George Paton on QBs: I think there’s some talented…

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After hiring Nathaniel Hackett as head coach, the Broncos’ next order of football business is to find its franchise quarterback.

Drew Lock remains on the roster, but he hasn’t looked like a true solution entering his fourth season. Teddy Bridgwater started 14 games for the franchise in 2021 and played admirably. But he’s set to become a free agent in March.

So like the rest of the league, the Broncos’ brass is in Mobile, Ala. this week for the Senior Bowl to scout the incoming crop of QBs. Though the 2022 draft class doesn’t have the headliners of recent years at quarterback, Denver G.M. George Paton spoke positively about it when discussing what the club could do at the position this offseason.

”You weigh the free-agency class compared to the draft class, and that’s what we’re doing now,” Paton said in an interview with the team’s website. “If we don’t think the draft class is very good, we’re probably going to try to go heavy into free agency or the trade market. But I think there’s some talented guys in this rookie class, so we’ll weigh that as we will other positions. What are the strengths of free agency compared to the draft, and if the draft isn’t strong at a certain position, we’re going to be very aggressive in free agency.”

Paton said Hackett will have a “big-time role” in evaluating what quarterback is right for the Broncos going forward. But Paton said he finds it important to see the QBs work out in person.

“There’s so much quarterbacks have to do during a game, during practice,” Paton said. “Seeing [Malik] Willis vs. [Kenny] Pickett and all the other quarterbacks, just back to back. I think there’s six here, and so it’s really [that you] can see two practices a day and you stack them up.

“How do they throw it? How athletic are they? How do they handle an interception? How do they handle adversity? … You can’t see all that on tape, so it’s very beneficial.”

The Broncos have the No. 9 overall pick in the first round of the upcoming draft after finishing the season 7-10.