ENGLEWOOD, Colorado – When it comes to the immediate future of quarterback Drew Lock, Denver Broncos quarterback, new CEO George Paton will be both a judge and a juror.
Paton, who was officially unveiled on Tuesday in his new job, faces several important items on his immediate task list, with a decision on whether or not Lock is the incumbent in 2021 and beyond right at the top. And it is a decision that Paton must, at least initially, dig alone.
“The best way is for George to go and evaluate [Lock] myself and not have me, [offensive coordinator] Bed [Shurmur] or [quarterbacks coach] Mike [Shula] influences his thinking, “said Broncos coach Vic Fangio.” Let him take a sterile, unbiased look. We can come back together and he can express his opinions based on what he saw. We can answer a few questions for him. … [But] it is best for him to form his own opinion without the influence of me or the other coaches. “
Lock, in his first full season as a starter, stepped up his potential at times, especially on stretch, including four touchdowns on Dec. 13 against the Carolina Panthers and his 339-yard day with two touchdowns in the final. of the season. But he finished last year among the league’s starting defenders in percentage of completion (57.3) and equalized for most interceptions (15), as the Broncos had the weakest turnover margin in the league (minus-16). ).
The Broncos, who started nine different defenders in the middle of the 2017 season and started running back Phillip Lindsay behind the center against New Orleans this season due to COVID-19 problems, have missed the playoffs in each of the last five seasons. They have not finished over 19 in the score since 2014 and there have been 28 in each of the last two years.
“I liked that Drew came out of the draft – big arm, athletic, game player,” Paton said. “I didn’t study him. I didn’t get into a lot of bands. I was only here for four days. I watched enough bands to know he had talent and could grow.”
Paton, who came to the Broncos after 14 seasons with the Minnesota Vikings, the last nine as assistant general manager of the team, has the final decision on the makeup of the Broncos list, the project and the free agency. He noted on Tuesday the importance of “stability” for the defender for a team that had a little behind the center since the withdrawal of Peyton Manning.
He also said that Broncos will explore every way to improve his position as he evaluates Lock.
“The defender is the most important position in the sport. If you do not have stability in the defender, you will have difficulties in sustaining the win,” said Paton. “I think we all want the franchise defender and that is the goal no. 1 try to elaborate and develop or acquire any way you can. “
Broncos football operations president John Elway, who has stepped down from the role of GM and been a key figure in Paton’s engagement, said he would give his opinion on Paton’s Lock, but that Paton did have the final call. Elway said he continues to like Lock’s potential, but that Lock needs to get to work this season.
“I’m still up to Drew; he has the physical ability to do it,” Elway said Tuesday. “We will continue to look at this position – you always are – and look at the opportunities you have. George will go through this whole process and if there is the ability for us to improve in this position even better than we think we have, then George will make that decision … I still think Drew is a young guy. He showed lightning this year, but he was wrong. Young defenders always make mistakes. I made a million mistakes the first two or three years, but that’s how you can learn from them. “