![]() ![]() “There’s just a lot that went into that year,” Lock said of his subpar sophomore campaign.īut, he added: “It does not excuse some of the decisions and some of the play I had. He had the third-highest interception rate and the fourth-lowest passer rating. Lock started 13 of Denver’s 16 games and ranked 27th in EPA per play, 26th in yards per attempt and 27th in touchdown percentage, according to TruMedia. Denver used its top two draft picks in 2020 on receivers Jerry Jeudy and KJ Hamler, neither of whom could practice in person with their new teammates until training camp. Pat Shurmur replaced Scangarello as offensive coordinator, but because of COVID-19 restrictions on gathering at team facilities, Lock had to learn the offense virtually. Lock’s 2020 season is probably a better sample to analyze, but context is required there, too. Drawing any definitive conclusions in either direction from that stretch is probably unwise, especially since Lock was a rookie with little film for defenses to dissect. Lock’s 14.0 QBR was the lowest in the league that week, according to ESPN. In that game, Lock completed 18 of 40 passes for 208 yards, no touchdowns and zero interceptions. The Chiefs’ defense finished 14th in DVOA. Lock’s four wins came against defenses ranked 25th, 22nd, 23rd and 31st in Football Outsiders’ DVOA metric. This five-game sample to which Lock, Carroll and GM John Schneider keep referring requires some context. I can throw the deep ball, I can move around in the pocket, I can play-action - whatever you might need me to do, I’ll do it.” “Collectively, as a group, when we start talking and getting into the deep details of his offense and what might be good for me … we’ll put it all together and end up being able to put a good offense together that makes my skill set shine. “We won four of the five games, I played efficient football, took care of the ball, scored in the red zone, hit the deep shots when they were there,” Lock said of his rookie season. Lock believes operating in a somewhat familiar system can maximize his skill set. Lock said Rich Scangarello’s modernized West Coast offense the Broncos ran in 2019 is similar to what offensive coordinator Shane Waldron is running in Seattle. Lock’s 4.5 touchdown percentage ranked 15th among quarterbacks with at least five starts, according to TruMedia, and his interception rate (1.9 percent) ranked 17th. Lock in those five starts threw seven touchdowns against three interceptions and averaged 6.5 yards per attempt with a quarterback rating of 50.2. Lock took over in Week 13 and quarterbacked victories over the Chargers and Texans, lost to the eventual Super Bowl-champion Chiefs, then closed the year with wins over the Lions and Raiders. Lock clearly believes a strong five-game stretch to end his rookie season in 2019 is indicative of the type of player he can be, something Carroll also referenced when discussing Lock last week. That was a big mentality Teddy took and being safe with the ball at the same time.” If you gain a yard on this play, it’s a positive play for us. “We know that we got plays that are designed to take a shot. What does managing a game look like for Lock? Teddy did a good job of being a point guard and I definitely learned a lot from him on how to do that.” Being able to watch those first games when I was actually the backup and (I) watched how he worked the pocket, watched how he managed games, watched how he came to the sideline, it was the first time I got to feel a veteran quarterback in the room. “There is definitely a game-manager identity to being a really, really good quarterback in this league,” Lock said, adding that he observed what this looks like from watching Teddy Bridgewater last season in Denver. This mindset aligns with comments Lock made during a video call with reporters on Monday, when he was asked about the idea of being a game manager and the point guard of the offense. ![]() In Carroll’s system, the quarterback doesn’t always have to be the reason they win the game he just can’t be the reason they lose. It’s his job to manage the game, be effective on third down and hit the occasional deep shot. The quarterback’s role, Carroll likes to say, is to be the point guard. In response to a question last week about whether he can win a championship with Lock, Carroll dove into his core principles: run the football, play good defense, be great on special teams. ![]()
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