Scouting Report: Denver Broncos QB Drew Lock and WR Courtland Sutton

If you're an NFL quarterback, there's one present you definitely should be asking for this Christmas: a game against the Lions and Matt Patricia's porous pass defense.

The lucky recipient of that present in 2019 is Denver Broncos rookie passer Drew Lock.

Speaking of that Lions defense, it's allowed a total of 1,038 passing yards the last three weeks, including 338 and three touchdowns against the Bears' Mitchell Trubisky in Week 13 and 458 yards and four TDs a week ago against the Buccaneers' Jameis Winston.

As for Lock, he could badly use a pick-me-up game, after his poor performance last week against the Kansas City Chiefs. He completed just 45 percent of his passes -- his career-worst through three NFL starts -- and threw zero TD passes for the first time in his career.

He also threw a pick -- his third in as many games.

So, playing against the Lions and their anemic pass D -- which is ranked 31st in yards allowed per game at 288.6 -- comes at a perfect time for the Broncos' 2019 second-round pick.

He comes into this Week 16 matchup with five touchdowns and three interceptions to his name, to go along with a 61.1 completion percentage and 651 passing yards.

Drew Lock’s numbers through three games:

58-of-95 (61.1%)
651 yards
5 TD
3 INT

That’s good for an 85.9 passer rating. Per @pfref, that places him 18th among 72 rookie QBs in the last 15 years in their first three starts.
— Andrew Mason (@MaseDenver) December 15, 2019

He threw for a career-high 309 yards and a career-best three scores in Denver's Week 14 win against Houston.

Lions head man Matt Patricia has been impressed with what he's seen on film from the Missouri product.

"That athleticism that you see, his speed, his decision making, the ball comes out really quick," Patricia said. "He’s got a good arm, (and) he can get the ball downfield. I think they have some vertical speed that they take advantage of, especially with (Noah) Fant and (Courtland) Sutton to get the ball downfield. I think on top of that, that extra element of him being able to extend plays is something that I think they’ve really capitalized on and then, really, to take off and run."

And one of Lock's best assets, according to Patricia, is his ability to make plays with his legs.

Patricia commented, "There are a couple plays on film -- Houston has some really fast players, and we’ve (seen) some fast guys on tape. The Kansas City game is a little bit tough with the snow from that aspect of it, nobody is really moving incredibly fast with that. But in the Houston game, you can see him run away from some DBs and some linebackers that I know can run. So, I think there is a little bit of that deceptive speed there that you have to be careful of when he gets out of the pocket."

He hasn't rushed much this season (eight rushes for 33 yards), but when he has, he's averaged 4.1 yards per carry.

The Lions should be more worried about Lock's ability to tear them apart through the air, though.

If he does, expect Broncos No. 1 receiver Courtland Sutton to be a large reason why.

Sutton leads the Mile High City's NFL franchise this season in catches (63), reception yards (1,019) and TDs (six).

He should be the recipient of a healthy dose of targets against Patricia & Co.

Veteran cornerback Darius Slay and rookie corner Amani Oruwariye both should get the chance to go one-on-one with the SMU product this afternoon.

Slay, who has been named to the Pro Bowl each of the past three seasons, has forced 47 incompletions -- tied for third-most in the league -- and has recorded 13 interceptions -- tied for second-most in the league -- during his span of consecutive Pro Bowl appearances.

#Lions CB Darius Slay (@_bigplayslay23) was named to his 3rd-straight Pro Bowl.

Since entering the @NFL in 2013, he leads the League in pass defenses (101), games with 3+ PDs (13) & games with 2+ PDs (29).

His 13 INTs over the past 3 seasons also tie for the most by any NFL CB. pic.twitter.com/w7f6hykOWl
— Detroit Lions PR (@LionsPR) December 18, 2019

Meanwhile, Oruwariye has been relatively productive in limited playing time.

Although he allowed four catches on four targets for 83 yards and a score last week against the Buccaneers, he had been impressive in four previous outings at defensive back.

Slay, as a result of Oruwariye's poor play against Winston & the Bucs and the Penn State product's minimal NFL experience, likely will get more of the one-on-one reps against Sutton -- especially if critical game situations arise toward the latter part of the contest.

Needless to say, Sutton will be a handful for both Lions corners.

He has picked up right where fellow receiver Emmanuel Sanders -- traded earlier this season to the San Francisco 49ers -- left off as the go-to weapon in the Broncos' passing game.

"Courtland has had a good season from the start," Broncos head man Vic Fangio said. "He’s obviously a size receiver, and runs well. He’s competitive at the ball, and he’s a good runner after the catch. And I think he’s had a very good season for us.”

Expect both Lock and Sutton to have their way with the Lions' pass defense this afternoon in the Mile High City.

My final stat line prediction for both today:

Lock - 24-of-37 for 241 yards, three TDs and an INT

Sutton - Four catches for 65 yards and a TD

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