Broncos rookie quarterback Drew Lock remains on injured reserve, but he has no reservations about the thumb injury that put him there.

“I’m ready whenever,” Lock said earlier this week. “Whenever they’re ready, I’ll be ready. I don’t know, I’ve been in this league for, what is it? It’s been eight weeks, nine weeks, whatever, [so] they know a lot more about this league than I do and they know a lot more about timing and this whole process.”

Troy Renck of Denver 7 reports that Lock is expected to return to practice after the team’s Week 10 bye, in advance of a Week 11 game at Minnesota.

“When I come back, they want to give me some practice reps before they put me into a game without even practicing a little,” Lock said on Tuesday. “I think they have an awesome plan and whenever they feel like they want to put that plan in place, I’ll be good.”

They need to get Lock on the field, for a couple of reasons. First, they need to see what he can do, especially since the 2-6 Broncos may be in position to draft a quarterback in the upper reaches of round one. Second, they may need him to play. With Joe Flacco on IR, it’s Brandon Allen and Brett Rypien as the two-deep depth chart in Denver.

So get ready, Broncos fans. Your team eventually could be leaving the starting job to the guy who looks like Beaver Cleaver.