Count Joe Flacco among those impressed by Broncos quarterback Drew Lock‘s debut.

“I think he handled himself really well,” Flacco told The Denver Post on Wednesday. “He just went out there and played football, the moment wasn’t too big for him, and it didn’t seem like the game was too fast for him. He was making his reads and had a nice pace to (his play).”

Flacco, the Broncos’ starting quarterback coming into the season, was placed on injured reserve on Nov. 1 with a herniated disc in his neck.

That paved the way for Lock to make his first NFL start one month later in a win against the Chargers, after the rookie quarterback worked his way back from his own injured reserve stint for a thumb injury and waited for Brandon Allen to make three November starts.

Flacco took notice of Lock’s patience as that timetable unfolded.

“Being on I.R. with his thumb for more than half the year, that obviously wasn’t what he wanted to start his career with,” Flacco said. “But he’s done a good job watching the team, being in meetings, learning as much as he can, staying engaged when he was healthy (in November) but not activated yet. When he got the opportunity to translate that out onto the field, he did a good job.” Related Articles With foundation built last December, Broncos QB Drew Lock leaned on 2 coaches for offseason instruction to flourish in 2020

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While Broncos Country will get a more extended look at Lock over the team’s final four games, Flacco said he doesn’t yet have a timeline to resume working out or throwing a football again.

“I’m doing well, and hopefully I’m getting better and can get out of this thing without any major (issues) happening,” he said.

The 34-year-old former Super Bowl MVP threw for 1,822 yards with six touchdowns, five interceptions and an 85.1 rating in his first year in Denver. He was also sacked 26 times.

Flacco’s salary cap number is $23.65 million in 2020 and $27.65 million in 2021, ’22 and ’23, the last two years of which are voidable. The Broncos restructured Flacco’s contract at the end of August, and in doing so, the team would absorb $13.6 million in “dead money” if the quarterback is released next March.