After being elected to the Professional Football Hall of Fame in his first vote, Peyton Manning is circulating in the media. In a conversation with Mike Klis of 9NEWS, the only five-time NFL MVP weighed in on Drew Lock and provided some context for the young defender’s struggles last season.
“I’m a Bronco fan, I’m a Drew Lock fan,” said Manning to Klis. “Look, last year, for anyone who had a new offensive coordinator and a younger defender, it would be a challenge.”
In fact, the Broncos was one of the teams hardest hit by the side effects of the pandemic because A.) they were extremely young in the attack and B.) there was a new manual to assimilate. Lock rolled with those blows and really started the 2020 campaign on a solid basis, despite losing any OTAs and preseason representatives.
Lock played well in Week 1 against Tennessee, passing 216 yards and a touchdown, ending with 95.0 QB. The Broncos lost that game, but not for lack of something that Lock did.
The following week, a catastrophe occurred when Lock was fired with 13 attempts to play in Pittsburgh, hurting his throwing shoulder. He wouldn’t return until week 6, but when he did, he played well, becoming the youngest QB to win at Gillette Stadium and leading the Broncos to victory over the New England Patriots.
From there, things developed and it is difficult to say exactly why Lock backed down. He made many interceptions, made countless wrong decisions, and what is worse, he repeated these mistakes over and over again.
Meanwhile, young NFL QBs affected in a similar way by the pandemic increased the numbers, like Justin Herbert in LA and Kyler Murray in Arizona. An all-timer veteran like Tom Brady, in his first year in Tampa Bay, had a somewhat difficult start, but had a very successful season, despite having no OTAs and a preseason.
“The teams that really went on the hunt this year had veteran quarterbacks, veteran coordinators, had some chemistry together,” Manning continued for Klis. “Brady was kind of an exception. I think Tampa realized that it was best for them to lead many of his plays. ”
Undoubtedly, having that veteran appeal in the quarterback gave these teams like the Bucs an advantage in the competition. Even teams like Chargers and Cardinals, who saw their young QBs play well, were unsuccessful at the end of the day.
Lock recovered from week 11 onwards and ended the season strong. But the Broncos finished 5-11 and John Elway (Drew’s top bidder) resigned his GM role at the end of the season.
Lock’s modest improvements in the final stretch were nice to see, but it is possible that it was too late. With GM George Paton already kicking tires in QB veteran updates, it doesn’t look like Lock is seen as Plan A anymore.
But Manning is still hopeful that Lock can continue where he left off last year. This, however, will require some dominoes out of Lock’s control to fall in his way.
“It took a while to figure this out, but with the off-season pandemic, not having much time, it just isn’t easy.” Manning told Klis. “I’m rooting for Drew. I’m excited about their prospects for a whole year and an off-season. I’m excited for him to have a good year this year.”
If the Broncos finally choose to race back with Lock One last year, there are reasons for even the most pessimistic fans to hope. For the first time since his second / penultimate year in Missouri, Lock will have the same offensive coordinator and scheme for consecutive seasons.
The last time Lock received training and schematic continuity, he set the SEC on fire statistically, setting the Conference all-time record for 41-pass touchdowns. There is no guarantee that the exhibition would serve as a herald for Lock in 2021, but it was not a coincidence.
Quarterbacks and any young player, frankly, crave continuity. Consistency in training, scheme and general culture and support cast is huge for a defender.
The fly in the ointment for Lock are the incessant rumors linking the Broncos to the disgruntled QB Deshaun Watson of Houston. It seems that after hitting and failing Matthew Stafford, Paton was tied to Watson, including by Klis himself.
If the Texans make Watson available, it’s safe to assume that Paton will swing again, but hitting him won’t be cheap. If it’s another scam and a failure, expect Paton to return to Lock with a new and more talented veteran to be hired as a free agent to serve as a real fail-safe.
Manning still believes in Lock. But the Broncos? Time will tell.
Follow Chad on Twitter @ChadNJensen and @MileHighHuddle.