Peyton Manning retired after the 2015 season. The Broncos are 32-47 since, with no playoff appearances and nine starting quarterbacks, not counting the game they played without a quarterback.
So how does Drew Lock, a second-round choice in 2019, fit into the team’s future? Or does he?
“You look at the roster, there’s a lot of good, young football players we believe in, and Drew showed some flashes,” Broncos General Manager John Elway told Ben Swanson of the team website. “Obviously, he’s been very inconsistent but showed some flashes. And we still have high hopes for Drew that with a good offseason, a lot of hard work this offseason, a lot of film study, that he can come back and be a very good quarterback in this league.”
Lock’s 72.5 passer rating ranks 35th in the NFL, ahead of only Sam Darnold among qualifying quarterbacks. He has 14 touchdowns and 15 interceptions.
After going 4-1 in five starts last season, Lock is 4-8 this season.
“There’s a lot of things that he’s done really, really well, and then there’s some mistakes that become glaring when it comes from the quarterback position,” offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur said Thursday. “Everything that he’s done and made a mistake on is correctable.”
Still, Elway could look elsewhere yet again for a savior at the position. Manning worked. No other quarterback Elway has signed, drafted or traded for has.
