For a while there last season, Brock Osweiler looked like the future of the Denver Broncos.
He went 5-2 filling in for an injured Peyton Manning, and was in large part the reason the Broncos even made the post season. And his decision to bolt Denver in favor of the Houston Texans last offseason was as shocking to many of his former teammates as it was to fans. The two sides square off Monday night in his return to Denver, and many of those same former teammates can't wait to get some licks in on him.
"There's no ill will toward Brock. I am happy he got paid," linebacker Brandon Marshall said. "But it's competition. We want to kill him."
And get paid he did, signing a 4-year, $72 million dollar deal that, in hindsight, must seem like a bit of an oversight to the Houston brass right about now. Through five games, Osweiler's 2016 has been up and down — but mostly down. He ranks 27th in completion percentage, 29th in quarterback rating, and along with Ryan Fitzpatrick leads the league in interceptions with seven.
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But the Broncos defense still sees him as having the talent to turn things around, and certainly enough to provide them with a stiff test Monday.
"He's a gunslinger. He's also forcing a lot of throws. We know that he left us," cornerback Chris Harris Jr said. "It's going to be great. I am pretty sure that he wants to win, and we want to beat him bad and get a lot of interceptions."
