Brock Osweiler, Broncos' Struggles Opening Door for Peyton Manning Return

Brock Osweiler may be the Denver Broncos' quarterback of the future, but Peyton Manning is what the team needs right now. 

Sunday's 15-12 loss to the Oakland Raiders at Sports Authority Field at Mile High only highlighted the deficiencies within the offense, despite another superb effort by the Broncos defense. 

Many will quickly come to Osweiler's defense and point toward multiple dropped passes by the team's receivers and a missed field goal. After all, the Arizona State product completed 10 straight passes to open the game and lead the team deep into the red zone numerous times. His 22 first-half completions tied a season high by any quarterback, according to ESPN Stats & Info. 

But inherent limitations exist within the offense when the fourth-year signal-caller is behind center. 

"It all starts and stops with me," Osweiler said after the game, per the Denver Post's Nicki Jhabvala. "I have to find a way to get our offense into the end zone and scoring points."

Manning may have far more physical limitations at this point in his career, but his approach to the game will certainly be an upgrade once he's fully healthy. 

Three areas have been lacking since Osweiler took over the offense. It starts with the scheme itself and how the young quarterback's fit in the system can be both a positive and a negative. 

Non-Vertical Threat

Osweiler is well-known for being one of the league's tallest quarterbacks. Yet, the 25-year-old's stature doesn't translate to a big arm with the ability to threaten every part of the field. 

After Sunday's performance, the 6'8" former basketball player averages 6.71 yards per passing attempt. His average can be found among the NFL's lowest. Even the injured Manning averaged a slightly higher 6.77 yards per attempt. 

Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports

Part of this falls on head coach Gary Kubiak's offense. The system is rooted in West Coast passing principles that use a shorter passing attack to substitute for the running game.

Throughout the Raiders contest, Osweiler often threw to underneath crossers or to routes run short of the first-down sticks. The design of the offense is what it is. 

But concerns grow when Osweiler doesn't even try to threaten certain parts of the field. He isn't being asked to test the defense deep, particularly outside the hashes. The only true deep passes he threw Sunday were seam routes by the tight ends, and they were effective when the team opened up the offense to a degree. 

Still, the wide receivers haven't been much of a downfield threat, and Osweiler isn't going to check into different calls to create what could turn into more favorable matchups.

Manning might throw the ugliest deep balls in the NFL—OK, there really isn't any might about it—but he'll take a few chances every game just to loosen up the defense. Those passes might not be completed, but they help keep a defense honest. 

Osweiler, meanwhile, is currently working well within the system, but he falls short in this particular area. He's not pushing the ball downfield enough, and defenses know he's trying to get the ball out of his hand as quickly as possible. 

It became obvious against the Raiders. Osweiler likes to hit his back foot on his drop and let the ball rip. This can be a good and bad thing. The fact that he wants to get the ball out quickly helps him work within a timing passing scheme. However, pass-rushers know if they don't beat their man off the snap, to immediately get their hands up and bat down the pass. This happened multiple times Sunday. 

Osweiler might be one of the league's tallest quarterbacks, but he also had a couple of passes knocked down at the line of scrimmage. 

This was only the start of the nightmare that eventually became the second half.

Lack of Protection

Joe Mahoney/Associated Press

Osweiler will likely wake up in the middle of the night this week drenched in sweat after seeing the Raiders' Khalil Mack in his dreams. 

Mack sacked the quarterback five times. 

The obvious answer to this problem is the Broncos' issues along the offensive line. However, sacks aren't always on the offensive line, as Football Outsiders' Tom Gower noted: 

Yes, the Broncos offensive line has been in flux all season. Multiple injuries wreaked havoc on the unit's overall effectiveness. Yet, there is more to it than simply blaming those blockers up front. 

Osweiler lacks pocket presence and is far too prone to taking sacks. Jhabvala detailed the astonishing rate: 

To compare, a far less mobile Manning, especially with plantar fasciitis, was sacked 15 times in nine games behind the same shoddy line. 

Being athletic enough to avoid pressure is only beneficial if the quarterback can identify and feel defenders bearing down on him. Otherwise, he's a sitting duck whose internal clock isn't correctly operating. 

Unsteady Presence 

A lack of pocket presence extends beyond being pressured by opposing defenses.

However, it's always easier for an offense to operate when undue pressure isn't being placed on the quarterback. Through his first three starts, Osweiler was hit or sacked 15 times. The Raiders got to him 13 times. 

Any time a quarterback is hit that much, he'll generally get rattled. It becomes even more apparent with young signal-callers. 

By the end of the game, Osweiler felt phantom pressure, as Rotoworld's Evan Silva mentioned: 

At this point in his career, Manning isn't anything more than a statue behind center. He's not going to move much in the pocket or avoid pressure. However, he'll consistently get the ball out quickly, test the defense, and pressure won't faze him. 

All of those things can't be said of Osweiler at this point in his development. 

An Upcoming Change?  

Each of these concerns point toward a young quarterback who needs continued development.

Osweiler only has four career starts under his belt, which is another reason why the potential move back to Manning may be the best plan for a team with legitimate Super Bowl aspirations. 

There is certainly plenty of potential in him as a future starter. The Broncos are built to win now, though. The team can't always rely on a defense to completely shut down every opponent. It's impossible to do in today's NFL. 

A calming presence at quarterback seems to be a better option at the moment than a young signal-caller feeling his way through multiple new experiences. 

Whether Manning is done after this season is inconsequential. The organization seriously needs to contemplate going back to the veteran once he's healthy. When that will be has not yet been determined. 

Manning officially restarted his rehab this past week and threw for about 30 minutes, according to ESPN.com's Jeff Legwold.

The former No. 1 overall pick can't turn back time and become the player he once was or even expedite his recovery process, but the player he is today is still better in certain areas than the Broncos' current starting quarterback. 

Brent Sobleski covers the NFL and NFL draft for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Twitter @brentsobleski.