A look at Drew Lock, Denver Broncos quarterback (Missouri video reviews)

By Alvin Alexander. Last updated: April 29, 2019

I watched three of Drew Lock’s games on YouTube, not just the “highlights” but every pass-related snap he took in 2018 games against South Carolina, Georgia, and Alabama.

What I thought was good:

Can definitely look to alternate receivers, not just locked in on one guy
Can throw from any arm angle to make a pass
Decent runner; got yards and knows how to slide feet first
Arm strength, can make any throw, long or short (Paxton Lynch, for example, was horrible at throwing short passes)
Quick release once he decides to throw
Seems good at improv (when not under a lot of pressure)
Can throw before the receiver is open, before they make their break (“throws a receiver open”)

Possibly bad:

Played one snap under center, and fumbled it
Some very bad decisions under pressure (and a few good ones)
Careless fumble under pressure against ALA
Horrible against SC when it started to rain: 0-6 with an INT and fumble (one pass could possibly have been caught for a TD, though it was thrown a little early)
Several sack-fumbles
His ability to throw from any arm angle and off his back foot sometimes makes you want to yell, “Set your damn feet!”
I think he was only in a huddle once (or possibly zero times), so being in a huddle and calling plays may be a new thing for him
Not sure if he has a killer instinct to get the ball in the end zone
Seemed like he had a lot of time to throw; won’t get that much time in the NFL (but that's probably true for many)

At first his throws reminded me of Jeff George, and then Jay Cutler. All in all he was better than I expected, but I’m a little concerned that he played 40+ games and he wasn’t better. He should have beaten SC. He had a WR drop a TD, but he also helped give the game away. But Georgia and Alabama were clearly superior teams, especially Bama, and I give him some credit for not completely folding, though he showed no urgency at the end of the Georgia game — seemed to accept they were beaten — which was disappointing.

Summary: The ability to see multiple receivers was impressive, I don’t often see that at the college level. And he doesn’t wait until the receiver is open, he throws it before the guy makes their break; most guys with a big arm can’t do that. I guess I’m pleasantly surprised.

The Broncos could have taken the center from A&M with that 42nd pick to really solidify their offensive line right there, but they went this way, so we’ll see how it turns out.