Broncos can’t afford to pass up veteran QB
John Elway has posted a help-wanted ad for a quarterback.
Only adults need apply.
Who’s the next quarterback of the Broncos?
“Going into it, we don’t know,” Elway said, when I asked him whether we should expect the quarterback for Denver in 2018 will be an experienced veteran or a raw rookie.
There’s no easy button for Elway to push. When the Broncos go looking for a quarterback this time, there’s no Manning coming to the rescue (sorry, Eli).
But if Elway is serious about getting back to the playoffs in 2018 and really doesn’t want to fire coach Vance Joseph 12 games into next season, isn’t the choice obvious? The first place the Broncos have to look for the answer is a quarterback with NFL experience.
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end with pink slips for everybody rather than a Super Bowl parade through town. Elway hates losing, so why would he have any patience for it? All the rules in the pro game are tilted in favor of the quarterback. And all the Broncos know for certain is if Trevor Siemian, Brock Osweiler or Paxton Lynch is their No. 1 quarterback next season, they’ve got no shot to win.
“There is no doubt we have to get better at that position,” Elway said. “For us to have a chance to get better, we have to get better at that position.”
So let the debate begin with NFL veterans Kirk Cousins, Alex Smith and Case Keenum rather than college prospects Sam Darnold, Baker Mayfield and Josh Allen.
Cousins has his flaws, as his 55 career interceptions and zero playoff victories in six pro seasons attest. What’s more, the Redskins might not let him hit the freeagent market. But, at 29 years old, Cousins is a man that won’t sit down and cry on the team bench when football knocks the snot out of him.
And with the fifth pick in the 2018 NFL draft, what would the Broncos get? Somebody like Mayfield. Thanks. But no thanks. Let some other NFL team teach 22-year-old Mayfield the best revenge is found on the scoreboard, not by grabbing his crotch. The goal in Denver is to win the AFC West, not go viral with a video of a punky QB on “Hard Knocks.”
“In college, you’re allowed to be a kid,” said Elway, nailing the No. 1 reason why so many hot QB prospects have such a tough time transitioning to the pro level. “You come in the NFL and the expectation levels rise, especially if you’re a high pick. You’re expected to be good, or show signs of being a very good player early. The other half is: How are they going to handle the situation, and how are they going to handle the (significance) of being a quarterback in the NFL? That is the biggest part, and I say it all the time. Just trying to figure out how these guys can handle the tough times, because there’s going to be tough times. When the world feels like its caving in, are they going to be able to battle through that and not lose their confidence?”
Translation: The Broncos are tired of babysitting Lynch.
With a first-round draft choice, a smart general manager selects the most-certain Pro Bowler on the board, regardless of position or need. That’s my draft theory. And I’m sticking to it. It’s also why my choice for the Broncos last season would’ve been Alabama linebacker Reuben Foster, not Utah offensive tackle Garett Bolles.
It’s hard to imagine how the best player available for the Broncos with the fifth overall pick in this year’s draft will be a quarterback. Pray that Penn State running back Saquon Barkley slips to Denver, or trade up to get a running back whose skill set could make any quarterback look good at No. 5; or take Notre Dame offensive lineman Quenton Nelson, even if he plays guard, when all the cool kids drool about tackles. Barkley and Nelson have more Pro Bowl potential than Darnold or Mayfield.
I’d rather roll the dice on Darnold than Mayfield. But, either way, it would be a gamble. The safer bet is to acquire a veteran quarterback.
Is Cousins really worth in excess of $25 million per year? Would the Chiefs even consider trading Smith to a division rival? After a career year in Minnesota, is it all downhill from here for Keenum?
There are no easy answers for the Broncos.
But this much I do know: No job in Colorado gets more scrutiny than quarterback of the Broncos.
It’s no job for a kid, unless you’re 98.7 percent certain he’s made of the same stuff as Elway and Manning.
Mark Kiszla: mkiszla@denverpost.com or @markkiszla