John Elway must draft a quarterback.
He doesn’t have to take one with his No. 10 overall pick. In fact, the odds are against it.
But starting with the No. 41 pick in the second round and no later than his second of two selections in the fifth round, Elway, the Broncos’ general manager, should take a quarterback.
Paxton Lynch is gone. Chad Kelly is gone. The Broncos’ youngest quarterback, Kevin Hogan, is a free agent after this season. The Broncos must re-start their line of young quarterbacks to develop in case one of them hit.
Here’s a look at 12 quarterbacks who could be under consideration for the Broncos’ roster, either through the draft or, in the case of one candidate, undrafted free agency:
1. Drew Lock, Missouri, 6-3 1/2, 228
Last year’s stats: 8-5, 62.9%; 3,498 yards, 28 TD, 8 INT
Comment: He’s starting his pre-draft visit with the Broncos on Sunday night and then will meet with Elway and Vic Fangio, among others, at Broncos’ UCHealth Training Center on Monday.
Elway and his top personnel assistant Matt Russell saw two college quarterbacks play in person last season: Oregon’s Justin Herbert and Lock. Herbert returned to Oregon for his senior year so Lock was clearly Elway’s favorite quarterback going into the draft process. It doesn’t mean Lock is his No. 1 QB coming out of the draft process.
Lock took his lumps as a true freshman starter in 2015 when current Broncos center Connor McGovern was his left tackle.
“Great player, great guy,’’ McGovern said about Lock in a late-November interview with 9NEWS. “Any team would be lucky to have him.’’
Lock is a possibility with the Broncos’ No. 10 overall draft pick. He’ll be gone by their second-round selection at No. 41.
2. Dwayne Haskins, Ohio State, 6-3,231
Last year’s stats: 13-1, 70.0%; 4,831, 50 TD, 8 INT
Comment: Only a one-year starter, but what a year. Strong arm, quick release and makes quick decisions. Only ran the 40 in 5.04 seconds so he’ll have to play from the pocket – which is what most of the great ones do anyway.
Broncos will host a top 30 visit with him by April 15 but Haskins is expected to be gone by the time the Broncos pick at No. 10.
3. Daniel Jones, Duke, 6-5, 221
Last year’s stats: 6-5, 60.5%; 2,674 yards, 22 TD, 9 INT
Comment: Has the prototype size and a good feel and mind for the game. Doesn’t have the strongest arm but throws with anticipation. Elway and company made a trip to Duke last week to give Jones a private workout.
Doubt the Broncos would take him at No. 10, but if Jones should fall out of the first round, he could be a consideration with the No. 41 pick.
4. Kyler Murray, Oklahoma, 5-10, 207
Last year’s stats: 12-2, 69.0%, 4,361 yards; 42 TD, 7 INT; 1,001 yards rushing
Comments: He figures to go No. 1 overall to Arizona because his remarkable athleticism and throwing talent fits perfectly with new head coach Kliff Kingsbury’s college offensive system. If not, concerns about his height could drop him to late in the first round/early second round.
There’s no way Elway drafts Murray because he wouldn’t fit the Scangarello system. Elway reportedly said during the NFL owners meetings he would bring Murray in for a visit, but there's been no buzz about it since.
5. Will Grier, West Virginia, 6-2, 217
Last year’s stats: 8-3, 67.0%, 3,864 yards, 37 TD, 8 INT
Comments: Received one of two formal QB meetings with Elway and company at the NFL Combine. Highly productive in the college offensive system but doesn’t have a strong arm. Considered more mature than other young 20-somethings as he’s married with a child. However, he was suspended at Florida for violating the NCAA’s performance-enhancement policy for what he says was a supplement.
He would be under consideration for the Broncos in the second, third or fourth rounds.
6. Jarrett Stidham, Auburn, 6-2, 218
Last year’s stats: 8-5, 60.7%, 2,794 yards, 18 TD, 5 INT
Comments: The other QB who got a formal combine meeting with Elway and Fangio. He’s expected to go somewhere between the third through fifth rounds. Stidham was thought to be a first-round pick entering his junior season, but his stock apparently dropped with rough performances in Auburn losses to LSU and Alabama.
7. Clayton Thorson, Northwestern, 6-4, 222
Last year’s stats: 9-5, 61.1%, 3,183 yards, 17 TD, 15 INT
Comments: Elway attended a private workout with Thorson at Northwestern on the same day the Broncos’ GM attended Jones’ workout in Duke.
Thorson recovered quickly from a torn ACL in his junior season bowl game to make all 14 starts for the Wildcats as a senior. Threw too many interceptions his final two seasons but he has the size, arm strength and enough moxie to make him a third-to-fifth round candidate.
8. Tyree Jackson, Buffalo, 6-7, 249
Last year’s stats: 10-4, 55.3%, 3,131 yards, 28 TD, 12 INT
Comments: Don’t think Elway will take another 6-foot-7 quarterback after Brock Osweiler and Paxton Lynch. Jackson has an extremely strong arm and he obviously stands tall in the pocket. Accuracy is a concern as evident by completion percentage, although Buffalo supposedly was a deep-shot offense. Doesn’t look to run although his 40 time of 4.59 seconds suggests he can. Has enormous potential. Drawing some comparisons to Cam Newton.
9. Brett Rypien, Boise State, 6-1 ½, 210
Last year’s stats: 10-3, 64.0%, 3,705 yards, 30 TD, 7 INT
Comments: Met informally with Scangarello at the combine. The nephew of former Super Bowl MVP Mark Rypien, Brett has understood the responsibilities of playing quarterback since he first picked up a ball. Doesn’t have ideal size or arm strength, though. Figures to be a fourth- to sixth-round selection.
10. Ryan Finley, North Carolina State, 6-4, 213
Last year’s stats: 9-4, 67.4%, 3,928 yards, 25 TD, 11 INT
Comments: When he got beat out as a sophomore by the freshman Rypien in 2015 at Boise State, Finley transferred to North Carolina State where he was a three-year starter.
Finley will turn 25 the day after Christmas as he spent six years in college, earning his bachelor’s degree in three years from Boise State, then picking up two master’s degrees at North Carolina State. So whether he makes it as an NFL quarterback or not, he’ll be fine.
11. Garner Minshew, Washington State, 6-1, 225
Last year’s stats: 11-2, 70.7%, 4,779 yards, 37 TD, 9 INT
Comments: Spent time at four colleges before his ability to throw on the move made him the perfect fit in Mike Leach’s “Air Raid” system.
Couldn’t have been easy replacing the late Tyler Hilinski as Washington State’s quarterback so Minshew must have the type of inner-strength, if not the ideal height to become an NFL quarterback.
Bonus candidate: T.J. Linta, Wagner, 6-4, 240
Last year’s stats: 3-6, 51.2%, 1,481 yards, 13 TD, 4 INT
Comments: A logical undrafted candidate for two reasons. One, his father, Joe Linta, is the agent of Joe Flacco, the Broncos’ new starting quarterback. Two, and the bigger reason, is his offensive coordinator at Wagner was Rob Calabrese who is now the Broncos’ offensive quality control coach.
Calabrese coached at Wagner in 2016 under offensive coordinator Rich Scangarello, who now holds the same position with the Broncos.
So T.J. Linta can help Flacco adjust to the Scangarello offense. Of course, nothing is more important than being about to play. Linta was a two-year starting QB at Brown before he became a graduate transfer senior at Wagner.
