Carson Wentz trade shows that the Broncos aren’t “out” on Drew Lock

With each passing day, the media makes it sound like the Broncos can’t stand the sight of Drew Lock. It’s like a celebrity couple in the grocery store tabloids.

Denver kicks the tires on Matthew Stafford and it’s a sign that George Paton is out on his young quarterback. The general manager simply doing his job, looking into what it would take to acquire a proven signal caller, is seen as a sign that he doesn’t believe in Lock.

Two Broncos players talk excitedly about Deshaun Watson and it’s interpreted as the locker room not believing in last year’s QB. Kareem Jackson and Jerry Jeudy answering direct questions about the NFL’s leading passer in 2020 is twisted into teammates ready to turn the page.

And this week, it’s hit new heights, with reports of the Broncos being ready to move on. First, Michael Lombardi appeared on “The Pat McAfee Show” and said Denver almost traded for a QB last week. He didn’t know the quarterback, the other team involved or what derailed the deal. Then, Tony Pauline of Pro Football Network said that the word on the street at the Senior Bowl was that the Broncos weren’t sold on Lock and had to “dumb down” their offense for him in 2020. Of course, no source for this bombshell was revealed.

It’s all poppycock.

Of course the Broncos are interested in Stafford and Watson. They’re great passers. They’d be significant upgrades over Lock.

That’s no knock on the young QB. It’s just a fact, at least right now.

Paton wouldn’t be doing his job if he didn’t look into those players. Jackson and Jeudy would be lying if they didn’t say they’d be excited by that move.

That’s what happens when a team is still unsettled at the most-important position in sports. That’s how the world works.

That doesn’t mean the Broncos don’t think Lock can develop into the long-term answer. It just means they’d take a sure fire answer if they could find one.

This was proven on Thursday when Carson Wentz was sent from the Eagles to the Colts in exchange for a third-round pick in 2021 and a second-round selection, which could become a first, in 2022. That’s a small price to pay for a former MVP candidate.

Yet, the Broncos weren’t willing to top it. They preferred to stand pat.

If they were as soured on Lock as many believe, that seems like an odd decision. If Paton was as desperate as some report, it would stand to reason that he’d jump on giving up the equivalent of K.J. Hamler and Michael Ojemudia for a guy who threw for 10,000 yards and 81 touchdowns in 40 games between 2017-19.

The fact of the matter is the Broncos are perfectly fine moving forward with Lock. But if a great QB falls in their lap, they’d gladly take him.

That storyline doesn’t make for good headlines. It doesn’t sell copies at the checkout stand. But it’s the reality.

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