Drew Lock Listed Among Top Darkhorse Favorites to Win NFL MVP
Drew Lock's name has been in the news a lot lately. Not so much because of anything he's done of late but rather, because of what he's poised to do.
The Denver Broncos' second-year quarterback is coming off a rookie season in which he spent the first 11 weeks on injured reserve after suffering a severe thumb sprain in the preseason. In Week 13, Lock went from IR to the starting lineup on the same day, leading the Broncos to a 23-20 victory over the L.A. Chargers.
By season's end, Lock helped the Broncos win four of their last five games and he set some NFL and club records along the way. Suffice to say, it was enough for the team to believe it finally had a quarterback to build around.
The national media, however, has been very slow to jump on the Lock train, mostly citing his small 'sample size' as the reason to pump the brakes. That makes sense, but it's not as if we learned absolutely nothing about Lock in the five games he started as a rookie.
That national narrative took on a different tonality this past week, though, as exemplified by NFL.com's Adam Schein listing Lock among the nine darkhorse candidates to win NFL MVP in 2020.
8. Drew Lock, QB | Denver Broncos
Insane? Or light years ahead of the curve?
Lock played well down the stretch last year, going 4-1 in five December starts with a 7:3 TD-to-INT ratio. Remember when the rookie outdueled Deshaun Watson in a 38-24 win at Houston? Yep, that happened, with Lock completing 22 of his 27 passes for 309 yards and three touchdowns (against one pick).
And John Elway has provided his second-year quarterback with a bunch of new toys this offseason. After adding RB Melvin Gordon in free agency, the Broncos GM stole WR Jerry Jeudy at No. 15 and then astutely plucked speed merchant KJ Hamler in Round 2. In the middle rounds, Denver grabbed a plug-and-play center (Lloyd Cushenberry) and Lock's old college tight end (Albert Okwuegbunam) As an organization, this is what you do when you have a young quarterback you believe in: You fully support him.
Every time Lock speaks, I come away impressed. I think the former second-rounder could enjoy a fantastic sophomore campaign. And I can't wait to watch this offense work.
Undoubtedly, Lock is feeling the love. Having the full faith and support of the organization can be a powerful thing.
"It means a lot to me to see that happen," Lock said last week via virtual presser. "It puts a little extra confidence on my back."
Lock has never lacked confidence. He's never lacked swagger. But he dropped to the second round of the draft and it might have been the best thing that could have happened to him because it gave him a bonafide chip on the shoulder.
The Broncos are all-in on Lock and have structured their entire offseason around him. The external and internal expectations have risen around the QB and it'll be interesting to see whether Lock can successfully manage them.
"Now at the same time, those expectations do rise when you have so many weapons around you, but I like to say that I hold myself to high expectations," Lock said. "I like to put pressure on myself in general. I think the pressure that I put on myself always outweighs the pressure that comes from media or even friends and family. I feel like the pressure that I hang on my head always means the most in the end to me.”
People are excited. Lock has caffeinated an organization and its fans.
Considering that the NFL MVP in each of the last two years has been a second-year QB, all eyes will be on Lock to see what kind of jump he can make in Year 2. Even going back three years to 2017, the second-year Carson Wentz was the front-runner for MVP before suffering a season-ending ACL injury. Broncos fans can probably still remember the butt-whooping Wentz put on Denver in Philadelphia earlier that season.
Will Lock be the next great second-year QB to emerge? Only time will tell but he will have no shortage of coaches and weapons to help him answer that question.
Follow Chad on Twitter @ChadNJensen and @MileHighHuddle.
