Mile High Monday: Drew Lock isn’t lowering his expectations in 2020

The NFL has fired things back up again in what is going to be an interesting training camp. It’s certainly different than we’ve become used to over the years, as every team in the league is dealing with the pandemic and trying their best to keep everyone safe and healthy.

I like this time of year, and this year is no different. August symbolizes a time to get things going in the NFL and it represents a grind for me work wise, as I won’t have a day off from now until the day after the Super Bowl – and I love it!

I also like contemplating life and sports when driving around with the top down on my old Jeep TJ! The following is a result of those trips during the week.

Buckle up, let’s take a ride through my thoughts.

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Moving On (Finally)

The Broncos released veteran tight end Jeff Heuerman on Friday. He was a third-round pick for the Broncos out of Ohio State back in the 2015 NFL Draft. I never liked the pick of Heuerman at that spot as I had a fifth-round grade on him. During his college career, Heuerman was a little-used receiver and mostly caught a small handful of tunnel screens for the Buckeyes. I could not project him to be a pass-catching threat in the NFL because he did not display that skill in college – even in limited fashion.

Heuerman was supposed to be a big part of the Gary Kubiak offense. During his first few days of rookie minicamp, however, Heuerman injured his knee and was lost for the season. Things never really got better for Heuerman after that. He would start here and there, but he struggled to stay healthy and didn’t really impress outside of a game or (maybe) two in four seasons. It was a bit shocking that after his rookie contract was up, the Broncos brought back Heuerman on a two-year deal.

Everybody knew this was coming. #Broncos move on with young TE corps. His former college teammate Nick Vannett likely to be no.2 TE behind starter Noah Fant. Rookie Albert Okwuegbunam in the mix (red zone) in 2020. @1043TheFan https://t.co/IjkYVOjoCK

— Cecil Lammey (@CecilLammey) July 31, 2020

I’m not exactly sure what took so long, but with his release the team now has some more cap space. With the transaction, Denver frees up $3.9 million in cap space. They still have a couple of roster spots open, so it makes one wonder who the Broncos will fill that space with – and if freeing up that extra $3.9 million has anything to do with it.

There are a few positions on this team that need help. The cornerback position springs to mind as one where the Broncos could do some extra work – including adding a potential starter like veteran free agent Logan Ryan. A guy can dream, can’t he? At the end of the day, the Broncos may just have that extra cap space as an emergency fund instead of using it to go after any remaining big-name free agent.

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Brace in Place

Broncos pass-rusher Bradley Chubb said he plans to wear a brace on his surgically repaired knee this season. He made it through only four games in 2019 before suffering a season-ending knee injury that required surgery. Chubb is back, healthy and ready to go for the Broncos – an exciting prospect for Broncos fans everywhere.

With Von Miller on the other side of him, Chubb gets some one-on-one blocking that he can take advantage of. Chubb has plenty of strength at the point of attack and can win with power or with speed. He’s developing more pass-rushing moves and is certainly an ascending talent in the NFL so long as he can stay healthy.

Chubb plays the “Khalil Mack role” in the Vic Fangio defense. That means he’s going to create havoc from the edge and be a nightmare for opposing quarterbacks – something Chubb was able to do as a rookie in 2018 when he snared 12.0 sacks. Chubb said in last week’s Zoom meeting that he could see this team being a top-five or top-10 defense in the NFL at least.

The Broncos defense is the subject of great debate. Without Chubb, the Broncos gave up 24 or fewer points in all but one of their final nine games. Overall, they ranked No. 10 in points allowed per game last season. This year, they want to rank even higher and be more devastating when it comes to getting after the passer. Having a healthy Chubb on the field, brace and all, will greatly improve their chances of performing better in year two of the Fangio defense.

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Do Not Lower Expectations

This is going to be an interesting season in the NFL. The reality of the situation is that every team is going to deal with zero minicamps, zero OTAs and zero preseason games. It’s going to be a difficult process to navigate, and some teams will be better at this “cold open” than others.

Broncos quarterback Drew Lock thinks they can be one of those teams. While some in the media talk about tempering expectations due to this weird nature of this offseason, Lock does not let that mindset infiltrate his head space.

“Not being able to be with the guys as much as you normally would is not going to change how I feel going into the season. I still want to do the things pre-COVID that I thought we could do this year,” Lock said. “I still want to do those things even though COVID hit the country and hit us and allowed us not to be with each other.”

The realistic point of view does include what could be some struggles due to trying to prepare for a season in a pandemic, and Lock admitted as such – but he did it without lowering or altering expectations.

“Also, the real factor of it is that, yes, we didn’t get enough time with each other. We’re going to have a shortened period of time where we’re going to have to pick up a lot of things extremely quickly. It might not be the prettiest at first, but our job is to make the mistake, learn from it and try not to make that mistake more than once because we really don’t have time to keep making the same mistakes. I’m still expecting the same things from us this year because we’re going to put in the extra work to be able to make up for that time lost,” Lock said.

"Yes, we are young, but when you're young, you're pretty hungry right as you get in here." – @DrewLock23

— Denver Broncos (@Broncos) July 31, 2020

I’m so glad that Lock is not lowering or tempering expectations for himself or his team in 2020.

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Let’s Do The Time Warp Again!

I don’t have a lot of time to watch TV. When I watch so much football, it leaves little time for anything else on the tube. Sure, I’ll throw on the Joe Rogan podcast on YouTube when I’m writing during the day, but that’s mainly for background noise and I’m not dialed into everything that is said.

So, when I watch a show – and really get into a show – it had better be worth my time. One of the favorite shows I watch is “The Umbrella Academy” on Netflix. It’s a comic book written by Gerard Way (lead singer of My Chemical Romance) and it deals with time travel and superheroes in a way that is unique and makes sense – something that is difficult for that specific genre.

Season two of “The Umbrella Academy” debuted on Friday, so it was good to get some weekend binging in before football gets into full swing. I so enjoy this story and these characters, dating back to when the comic book debuted back in 2007. It’s so much fun seeing these stories unfold on the TV screen over a decade later.

let's do the timewarp 🌀season 2 of the umbrella academy is now streaming. pic.twitter.com/hHHGK25WiJ

— Umbrella Academy (@UmbrellaAcad) August 1, 2020

What’s your favorite Netflix show to binge watch? Hit me up on social media and let me know!

Follow @CecilLammey