The quarterback scrap heap never had a chance.
Kevin Hogan was in decent shape to make the 53-man roster as the Broncos’ No. 2 quarterback, anyway, but the veteran may well have cemented his position with his best performance of the preseason here Thursday night.
Hogan threw a touchdown pass to Fred Brown while helping the Broncos to a 10-0 halftime lead against the Arizona Cardinals at Broncos Stadium at Mile High. The Broncos went on to win, 20-7.
"My resume the last month-and-a-half, I'm proud of it,'' Hogan said. "I feel like I'm playing some good football. I thought the preseason games didn't always go the way you hope. But I feel like throughout camp I played some real good football and have the confidence of my teammates and my caoches.''
Denver running back Khalfani Muhammad set up a third-quarter touchdown with a 49-yard run and Brandon McManus kicked his second field goal of the game in the fourth quarter.
It was the final game of the preseason and Hogan waited till the end to turn in his best audition, completing 12 of 23 for 138 yards in his first half of work.
“Yeah, there were some good plays on Kevin's part there,'' Broncos head coach Vic Fangio told 9News' Rod Mackey at halftime. "I thought the offense had some good moments moving the ball. Not enough, really, but overall not that bad.”
The Broncos, who finished their season with a 2-3 mark, will start trimming their roster from 87 players on Friday. They must get their roster down to 53 players by 2 p.m. Saturday.
If Hogan does make the team, he should send at least a card of thanks to Brown. The two hooked up for 15 yards and 25 yards on consecutive plays on the opening drive, which ended with a 50-yard Brandon McManus field goal.
Brown finished with 5 catches for 66 yards with the 6-yard touchdown in the right corner of the end zone in his own bid to pull off a roster upset.
Hogan was intercepted twice late in the second half -- one on a pass that was tipped and the other on a final-play, desperation heave to the end zone on fourth and long.
Joe Flacco is the Broncos' starting quarterback, but second-round rookie Drew Lock, who had moved up to No. 2 early in the preseason, suffered a sprained right thumb. Lock is expected to miss the first month or two of the regular season.
Broncos general manager John Elway is also expected to look at quarterbacks from other teams who will be cut this weekend. But Hogan had a full offseason running offensive coordinator Rich Scangarello’s new offense and while he’s been far from perfect, he would be well ahead of any new QB who would have to relearn the system and playbook.
PHOTOS | Cardinals vs. Broncos: 8/29/19
SUGGESTED VIDEOS | Sports
