Are Broncos crazy enough to chase NFL playoff berth without legit backup to quarterback Russell Wilson?

Sooner or later, the Broncos are going to be forced to take the bubble wrap off quarterback Russell Wilson. He better not be fragile, because I’m not sure Denver can win a single NFL regular season game without him.

If games that don’t count in the standings can teach us anything, it’s that Josh Johnson and Brett Rypien are shaky enough to make us miss Teddy Bridgewater.

The battle for No. 2 quarterback is over.

There is no winner.

Backup quarterback? The Broncos don’t have one. If Johnson or Rypien is the answer, the question is: What was Broncos general manager George Paton thinking?

Bring me Taylor Heinicke from Washington. Or Mason Rudolph, who’s stuck in a corner and disgruntled in Pittsburgh. Heck, I’d settle for Blake Bortles. Bring me anybody. Please.

Before Denver heads to Seattle for the season-opener Sept. 12, a team that fancies itself a playoff contender needs a legitimate backup to Wilson.

Denver coach Nathaniel Hackett doesn’t like preseason. Can’t say that I  blame him.

The Broncos are good for little more than inducing an afternoon nap with either Johnson or Rypien at the controls of their offense.

“I think both those guys have done a really good job,” Hackett said Saturday, after a 42-15 loss to Buffalo.

We all know the final score of a football game in August doesn’t matter. But in a camp as relaxed as Club Med, I’m not certain Hackett and this coaching staff always place emphasis on what matters most to a football team. And nothing matters more in the NFL than quarterback efficiency.

OK, I get it. We’re riding with Wilson as far as he can take the Broncos. Denver absolutely needs him to play at the Pro Bowl level that was Wilson’s norm in Seattle before his relationship with the Seahawks went sour.

The first thought in Hackett’s every waking minute seems to be to do everything to make Wilson and Ciara feel as if they own the joint at Dove Valley headquarters. The only problem?

There is No Plan B. And that’s a bad idea in the rugged AFC West, where the difference between making and missing the playoffs figures to be razor thin, as thin as one victory by a backup quarterback called into emergency duty.

If memory serves, John Elway needed Bubby Brister in 1998 and Peyton Manning needed Brock Osweiler in 2015 in order for either Hall of Fame quarterback to smile while hoisting the Lombardi Trophy at the Super Bowl.

Hindsight being 20/20, the opportunity was there in this year’s NFL draft for Paton to find a suitable young understudy to Wilson at a reasonable cost. Paton could’ve brought in a rookie quarterback who could not only watch and learn but actually lead the Broncos to victory, if needed.

When North Carolina quarterback Sam Howell, considered a first-round prospect in 2021 before returning to play for the Tar Heels, began to fall down the board, the Broncos could’ve easily grabbed him in the fourth round, when Paton had back-to-back picks at Nos. 115 and 116, which he used to select cornerback Damarri Mathis and defensive lineman Eyioma Uwazurike.

Howell would’ve been a better choice at that point. At 6-foot-1, he’s relatively undersized, but has the mobility and awareness to extend plays. Howell also loves throwing the deep ball. His strengths would’ve fit ideally with how the Broncos want to mold their offense around Wilson.

With the first pick of the fifth round, the Washington Commanders got a steal in Howell. The Broncos have no safety net if Wilson falls down and gets hurt.

During a lopsided loss to the Bills, in which the two best quarterbacks to see the field were MVP-candidate Josh Allen and our old pal Case Keenum, the Denver offense sputtered.

Johnson reminded us why at age 36 he’s a paint-by-numbers journeyman who has won a single game in his NFL career. Rypien completed 22 of 26 attempts against the back of Buffalo’s roster and although his upside is limited, he seems to be a better option than Johnson.

“We just want to keep that competition rolling,” Hackett said.

But can’t the Broncos do better than Johnson or Rypien?

Howell might well make Heinicke, who won seven times and started a playoff game for Washington in 2020, expendable in Washington. Bortles, who threw for over 4,000 yards and 35 touchdowns in his best season for Jacksonville, is available as a free agent.

We all dream of Wilson taking every snap that matters from now until the Super Bowl. But the reality is Denver has needed more than one quarterback to get through six of the past seven NFL seasons.

In a violent sport, only a fool plays without a safety net.

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