The Broncos need to avoid the temptation to chase a unicorn
Feb 3, 2021, 6:00 AM
There’s only one thing the city of Denver loves more than their quarterback — a better quarterback. After an uninspiring 5-11 season, many are clamoring for new blood under center. And it’s hard not to understand why.
The Broncos were near the bottom of the league in most offensive categories, and quarterback Drew Lock was all the way in the cellar. In a year that saw increases in completion percentage for nearly every NFL quarterback (three QBs were over 70 percent), Drew Lock went the opposite way.
In 2019 (in only five games), Lock threw seven touchdowns and three interceptions, completing 64.1 percent of his passes. This year, in 13 games, he threw 16 touchdowns, 15 picks and completed 57.3 percent of his passes. 2020 may be looked back on as “the year of the quarterback,” but not in Denver. For Broncos Country, it was a painful reminder of what is missing.
But a football loss is a football loss, no matter how you slice it or who you blame it on. The Broncos had 11 of them this year. Unacceptable. Even less acceptable is the 12 losses that the Houston Texans posted.
Those Texans had a healthy Deshaun Watson under center all year long. Watson led the league with 4,823 passing yards, threw 33 touchdowns and seven interceptions, and completed more than 70 percent of his passes. And still, they lost 12 games! A generational transcendent quarterback talent that some in Broncos Country want to trade the farm for could only win four games in the NFL.
“How can this be?” you ask. “He’s a UNICORN!”
I’ll tell you how.
Because the modern NFL quarterback is being drastically overvalued. Potential is now preferred over production.
Jared Goff just got shipped out of Los Angeles with a 68 percent winning ratio. Think about that. He won two out of every three games for the Rams, and somehow he fell out of favor because he doesn’t make you say, “Wow!” He just wins ballgames.
Fact is, everyone wants a pet unicorn these days, even at the expense of winning. But let me ask you, dear reader, what would you rather have a quarterback you win because of or a quarterback you can win with? Would you rather have the best quarterback in the league or the best team?
Goff is a quarterback you can win with. Watson is a quarterback you win because of. That is why the Texans only won four times and the Rams won 10.
No matter how good he is, the unicorn is not enough. Football is a team sport and if you don’t shore up your defense and your running game, it doesn’t matter who you have under center. You will fail.
When you give $39 million a year to one player, it may be easy to lose sight of the big picture.
“Look at out quarterback! We’re good!”
No you’re not. You’re actually very bad.
The Texans defense was dead last in stopping the run in 2020. Spending the type of money and giving up the type of draft capital necessary to get Watson in Denver would severely hamstring Vic Fangio’s ability to do what he was brought here to do—build an elite defense.
Put it like this: The quarterback on the team with the No. 1 run defense in the NFL in 2020 is a guy who was 21st in the league in completion percentage, right behind Cam Newton and Gardner Minshew. His name is Tom Brady. He’ll be playing in his 10th Super Bowl this weekend.
Why?
Because the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are great football team, and he makes them better. The Bucs were a quarterback away from greatness.
Are the Broncos a “quarterback away” from greatness? If the answer is “no,” then don’t go chasing unicorns. Focus instead on building an elite defense. Focus instead on offensive chemistry. On depth. On accountability. On a culture of doing things the right way.
That’s how you beat a unicorn. Not by getting your own, but by turning Drew Lock into a stallion you can win with.
