Paton: Broncos 'Really High' on Drew Lock But 'I Don't Know About Week 1' Starter
Stopping short of crowning Drew Lock the 2021 Opening Day quarterback, Denver Broncos general manager George Paton again stressed that "competition" is coming for the third-year incumbent.
“I don’t know about Week 1, but we’re really high on Drew," Paton told reporters Thursday. "I like seeing Drew here every morning when I come in. He’s working hard and trending in the right direction. As you know, he has a lot of talent. I think he’s becoming a better pro, but we’re still going to look at the quarterback position. I’ve said since I’ve gotten here that we want to bring in competition. That’s the goal, and we plan on doing that.”
With one week remaining until the annual NFL Draft, Paton is keeping open every available QB option while carefully manicuring the team's leverage in potential trade talks — either to acquire veteran insurance behind Lock or secure his successor.
The former route may lead the Broncos to Carolina's Teddy Bridgewater, whom Paton knows from their time in Minnesota. Chicago's Nick Foles and Jacksonville's Gardner Minshew are also expected to be dangled during or after the Draft, and each has been linked to the Mile High City.
Paton acknowledged the need to find the "right guy" but parroted the credo with which he governs: Aggressive, not reckless.
"We do like Drew Lock. What we don’t want to do is force it and bring a guy in or overpay a guy to come in and he’s not as good as the guy we have and maybe he’s not good enough to compete. We want to get the right guy, and we still have time," he said. "There’s a trade market and we still have the draft. The landscape may change after the draft. If a team drafts one, maybe that quarterback is on the market. We’re going to be patient and not force it. We realize we want competition, and I’ve said that since I’ve gotten here. That hasn’t changed.”
The latter route may result in the Broncos mortgaging the future for a blue-chip prospect such as Ohio State's Justin Fields or North Dakota State's Trey Lance. Paton personally scouted both signal-callers in recent weeks; numerous mocks have since projected an orange-and-blue bombshell on April 29.
Considering how the board might break, particularly if Mac Jones goes No. 3 to San Francisco, there's a chance the "right guy" falls directly into the rookie GM's lap. No franchise-altering trade required, no precious capital surrendered.
And between the two, Paton intimated, the Broncos couldn't choose wrong.
“They’re different," he said of Fields and Lance. "Both are elite athletes with really strong arms. Both are really talented and smart. They have all the intangibles you want in quarterbacks and football players. They’re raw a little bit, but really high ceilings for both players.”
Is Lock's ceiling higher than an incoming rookie's? In seven more days, that million-dollar question will be answered.
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