Following their 2015 super bowl victory, Peyton Manning retired and it left Denver with a huge hole at quarterback. Since then, they’ve cycled in seven starting quarterbacks: Trevor Siemian, Paxton Lynch, Brock Osweiler, Case Keenum, Joe Flacco, Brandon Allen and Drew Lock. The first six were all mediocre at best for Denver, but the Broncos finally have their franchise quarterback in Drew Lock.
Promising 2019 Season
Denver’s 2019 season started with more woes at quarterback. Joe Flacco, acquired from Baltimore during the offseason and Brandon Allen, signed just before the season, combined for a 3-8 record through the first 11 starts.
Drew Lock, who began the season on injury reserve, started in Denver’s final five games. He had an impressive stretch leading the Broncos to a 4-1 record, with his only loss coming against the eventual super bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs. His stats were: 1,020 yards, 7 touchdowns, 3 interceptions, a 89.7 passer rating and 2 game winning drives. While just a small sample size, Lock showed lots of promise in 2019.
Building Around Lock
During the offseason, the front office wanted to build around Drew Lock. They selected wide receivers Jerry Jeudy and KJ Hamler in the first two rounds of the draft. Those two, paired with Courtland Sutton, who’s coming off a pro bowl season creates one of the most talented young receiving trios in the NFL. They signed Melvin Gordon, which forms a duo of former 1,000 yard rushers with Phillip Lindsay. The Broncos also have some reliable young targets at tight end in Noah Fant and Albert Okwuegbunam. John Elway has given Drew Lock the keys to the offense and is surrounding him with young playmakers to help him succeed.
Drew Lock has shown promise in his limited NFL experience and with the added playmakers around him he should quickly settle in as the future and lead Denver to success for years to come.
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