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One of the biggest questions surrounding the Denver Broncos in this years NFL Draft is who they will select at the quarterback position. Will they find their QBOTF in this years' class? Is there a prospect worthy of that praise? The Mile High Report staff gives their thoughts in the fourth installment of our NFL Draft Round Table. Enjoy!
Select a quarterback from this years' draft class that you believe can be the Broncos' QBOTF and why?
Ian Henson: Bring me the son of Peggy and Nathaniel Prescott. Dak (short for Dakota) Prescott, I'd draft him in the first (but the Broncos aren't that type of ***h****). but there's a lot going on with this guy. I get that. I look at that as being just as much a testament to his actual value. If you're a scout you want him available in the round that you think that you can actually draft him in. Do you guys even remember what it was like to have a quarterback that could take 8 yards at will? If the Broncos figure out the bootleg with a guy like Prescott, they have the 8 yards on first down back.
Sadaraine: Paxton Lynch is a guy I can see us moving up to grab if he drops far enough. We have the trade capital to make it happen. He looks like a guy that has a lot of potential. I like the big arm he has and he seems to have decent mobility. What I really dig is that he plays well under pressure.
Tim Lynch: I think Connor Cook can be the quarterback of the future, but not many agree with me there. So either the Broncos will need to give up a small farm to trade up for Paxton Lynch or they will need to sit back and take a guy like Dak Prescott in the second round.
Joe Mahoney: I'm really starting to take a liking to Vernon Adams, Jr who played three seasons at Eastern Washington (FCS), graduated then played one season at Oregon. If he were taller, he would be in the conversation with the guys in the second tier (Cook, Kessler, Prescott, Jones).
Adams was measured at 5'11" at the combine. Short QBs are out of fashion in the NFL, but Drew Brees and Russell Wilson prove that you can succeed at QB in the NFL even if you are under six feet tall. Given the recent experience of Seattle with Russell Wilson, who would have been a first rounder if he were taller, you have to like idea of the Broncos taking a chance on Adams on day three. He has the same leadership and talent that Carson Wentz has, but he is much smaller.
His resume is somewhat similar to Wentz in that he played FCS level and led his team to a host of conference championships and playoff victories, but unlike Wentz, Adams proved he can play with the big boys when he led the Ducks to a 9-4 record in his final season of college football. Here's PFF's list of the positives about Adams:• Makes big plays. Big-time throw (BTT) percentage of 6.97 percent ranks third in the class
• Works through progressions, can hit throws on the backside of plays
• Intermediate and deep accuracy was among the best in the class
• One of the most accurate in the class on over-the-shoulder throws (32.1 percent)
• Ball location on passes thrown between 20 and 40 yards is among the best in the class
• Graded at +5.0 against pressure, still averaged 9.6 yards/attempt
• Can make plays with his legs. Averaged 7.0 yards per carry on 27 scrambles
PFF has him graded as a 4th round prospect and also ranks him significantly higher than Brissett, Driskel and Jones - all of whom will probably get drafted before him simply because they have more of the "NFL-QB body" the GMs seem to crave.
Pete Baron: I'm not sure there is a "Franchise QB" in the true meaning of the word in this year's draft. There is no Andrew Luck or Aaron Rodgers or Ben Roethlisberger in this draft. The closest I can come to "Serviceable QB of the future with 'who knows' upside that can work in a specific system to win multiple championships even though in a bubble he isn't great" would be Cardale Jones. But that's about it.
Scotty Payne: Paxton Lynch or Dak Prescott.
Lynch has the highest upside of any quarterback in this draft but will need time to develop. Kubiak, Dennison, Knapp and Elway can all get the most out of Lynch.
Dak is my other favorite, and I just see a playmaker at QB. He can use his legs or arm to make plays. He might not ever be an elite option, but he will do enough to make the Broncos competitive for years to come.
Ian St. Clair: That obviously makes the Broncos' QBOTF Paxton Lynch. There is so much potential, and he's the ideal fit for this system. He's more athletic than Brock Osweiler but also sturdier and has a better arm. Lynch could become an all-pro in Denver. With the weapons and coaches to teach him just adds to the recipe for success. Yes, he needs time to develop, but when he does he could be the best quarterback in this draft.
Laurie Lattimore-Volkmann: The answer is the same to this question as it was the first in our round table. Paxton Lynch.
Christopher Hart: I don't believe the Broncos are in a position to get their QBOTF in this years' draft, nor do I think highly of that many prospects outside of Wentz. I think the Broncos would be better served to try and get a guy like Kevin Hogan (Stanford) or Jacoby Brissett who could end up developing into good starters, but at the very least would be quality back-ups in the NFL.
Jeffrey Essary (NastyJ): Paxton Lynch is kind of the consensus choice around here and I can see why. He shows good arm strength and mobility, and plays well under pressure. His completion % under pressure last year was 70%. Compare that with the 2 other top QBs in this draft: Goff, 65% and Wentz 55% (oof).
Also, he had the highest PFF grade in the nation on designed rollouts and Memphis rolled him out the 3rd most time of all QBs. Seems like a great fit for Kubiak. He's the only QB I'm ok with taking in the first. I would even trade up a few spots if it wasn't too expensive.
Don't forget to sound off in the comments section and tell us who you think could be the Broncos QBOTF in this years' NFL Draft.
Part 5 of Mile High Report's NFL Draft Round table is just around the corner. Keep checking in all day for the best Denver Broncos draft coverage around throughout the course of not only today, but Friday and Saturday as well.