Drew Lock will be using the VR for the time being. And that time could be at least eight weeks if he starts on IR.
Via Jeff Legwold of ESPN.com, Broncos coach Vic Fangio said it was possible his rookie quarterback could start the season on injured reserve because of his severely sprained right thumb.
“Obviously because it’s his throwing hand and a thumb, that’s a pretty serious injury for a quarterback,’' Fangio said. “It will be some time before we know exactly where he’s at and how much time he would miss.’'
Asked specifically about the possibility of starting the season on IR (which would require keeping him on the 53-man roster through final cuts), Fangio replied: “Yeah, it could be if we don’t think he can play for a while. The bad thing about it is because of the injury he can’t do much.’'
Lock won’t play or practice for the rest of the preseason, and will only do conditioning and virtual reality work, after he suffered the injury in Monday’s game. X-rays on Lock’s thumb were negative, but it’s clearly a significant problem for him.
"[I’m] trusting the [training] staff in there to get me back as soon as possible,’' Lock said. “Whenever that is, we’ll decide on whenever I’m 100 percent ready to go.’'
With the second-rounder on the sidelines, Kevin Hogan and Brett Rypien will compete for backup duties behind Joe Flacco.