Denver general manager George Paton and new head coach Nathaniel Hackett are singing the same tune regarding the No. 1 goal for the Broncos this offseason — get a quarterback. Preferably a franchise cornerstone.
They have 11 picks in the upcoming draft to play with. They have the qualities they’re looking for. Now all they need is the right guy.
“We work through it. We just want the best guy,” Paton said Tuesday from the scouting combine in Indianapolis. “We don’t care if it’s free agency; we don’t care if it’s the draft; we don’t care if it’s a trade. We’re going to exhaust all options to try to get the best guy for the Broncos.”
Hackett mentioned looking for a QB with that “it” factor, and 2019 second-round pick Drew Lock doesn’t appear to be it. Lock is 8-13 as the starter and lost the starting competition to Teddy Bridgewater in 2021. Bridgewater is a free agent.
The Broncos have been linked to Aaron Rodgers, but the Green Bay Packers will have the final say about trading away their future Hall of Famer.
“You want a quarterback that when he’s out there, he’s going to make other people better around him,” Hackett said. “In the end it’s about that intelligence. It’s to be able to get out there and process quickly because it’s the hardest position in all of sports, in my opinion. It’s unbelievable.”
His boss agrees.
“I think it’s always a priority. It’s the most important position in sports, so we’re always looking,” Paton said, acknowledging Lock and Brett Rypien. “No stone unturned to find that guy. We know we need better play out of the quarterback position. So we’re going to be aggressive.”
The 2022 quarterback draft class is considered weak. The Broncos, who have the No. 9 overall pick, reportedly had formal interviews Monday night with Kenny Pickett, Matt Corral and Malik Willis, among others.
“I went to all of their live games, and you get to know them a little bit there. Then the ones who showed up at the Senior Bowl, that’s another look there. This is just another step in the process,” Paton said. “This class is an interesting class. You have five or six talented guys, and they’re all different. So we just really need to hone down and sort it out and stack them, and see who’s best for the Denver Broncos if we go that direction in the draft.”
–Field Level Media
