Once upon a time, QB Brock Osweiler was supposed to be the next franchise QB for the Denver Broncos after legend Peyton Manning retired. That fate never really happened after he and Manning helped the team win Super Bowl 50.
After four years in Denver, Osweiler bounced from team to team and never garnered much success. Ultimately, he wasn’t signed with any team entering this season. He is retiring at 28 after seven years in the league.
“I’m extremely grateful for the time I did receive playing in the National Football League,” Osweiler told reporter Mike Klis in a phone interview on Wednesday. “The experiences I did have, people I did meet, relationships I did make — I’m not going to dwell on the things that didn’t happen in my career.
“Being a kid from Kalispell, Montana, playing for the Denver Broncos, winning a Super Bowl, having the opportunity to sign a second contract — when you look back on it, I couldn’t be more appreciative. It was great.”
Osweiler most recently played with the Dolphins in 2018 but made a name for himself as the backup in Denver behind Manning. He started seven games and led the team to a 5-2 record while Manning was injured. That great start propelled them to a Super Bowl win that season.
“That 2015 season is something that is very special,” Osweiler said. “The coaches, the players, they mean the world to me. I was thankful to have had the opportunity to play the role I did but that was the ultimate team deal.
Osweiler continued: “There was a ton of talent on that football team, but I would say we were the closest of all teams in the National Football league. Our culture was beyond anything that can ever be created. It was so genuine, so real that I think any coach or player on that team would have done anything for anybody in that building that year,” he added.
After 2015, Osweiler signed a four-year, $72 million deal with the Texans but struggled and was released the following year. After the Browns, he moved back to the Broncos and ended with the Dolphins. Along the way, Osweiler put up decent numbers for a backup quarterback.
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While teams showed interest in Osweiler, he wanted more commitment to him than they were willing to offer, so he decided to hang it up. Osweiler finished his career with a 59.8 completion percentage, 7,418 yards passing, 37 touchdowns and 31 interceptions along with an unforgettable Super Bowl ring.
NFL fans and others on Twitter were quick to slam Osweiler as a terrible quarterback who was paid significantly more than he deserved on nearly every team he played for.
