Risner, Lock thrilled to be on same team

Broncos Country went wild when Al Wilson announced that the Broncos’ second pick in the draft was Colorado’s own Dalton Risner - a fan-favorite o-lineman ever since learning how big of a Broncos fan the Wiggins native is - and has been.

And then it went crazy when Elway traded up and got his favorite quarterback in the 2019 draft class on the next pick - Drew Lock.

But there were two people in particular really excited about the Risner and Lock combo.

Risner and Lock.

And not for the obvious reason that they just got picked for an NFL team, but that the other one was coming too.

The Kansas State lineman and the Missouri quarterback had already hit it off at the Senior Bowl and even worked out together some in California.

Both are really happy to have the other on the same team.

“Drew is my boy,” Risner said of his fellow rookie. “By far, out of all the quarterbacks [at the Senior Bowl], Drew knew how to control the huddle. He knows how to come in and have confidence and give offensive linemen confidence. He just knows what he is doing.”

The feeling of respect is mutual.

“Dalton is a fiery human being,” Lock said, adding that he told Elway he thought they’d work well together. “Getting into a huddle with him, really intense, looking at you in your eyes, he’s ready to go. He loves to talk, loves to get things going, and I’m kind of the same way.

Risner admitted to being just a little intense.

“I just take pride in playing with an edge. That is something that every time I am out there on the field, I am not out there to make any friends. I am out there to play this game of football,” Risner added. “Finishing guys on the ground, that is what offensive line is all about. I think we’ve kind of strayed from that, but old school football offensive line is about getting your hands on someone and driving them and finishing them on the ground and I take a lot of pride in that.”

And so will Lock, who’s probably more than a little happy to have a guy like Risner blocking for him.

“We talked about [Risner] being chippy, talked about him getting into peoples’ faces, finishing blocks,” Lock said. “I’m kind of the same.”

And both rookies will be looking to former Missouri center Connor McGovern for some guidance and mentoring.

“I knew Connor before this; I knew Sam. I’ve obviously watched Ja’Wuan play before. I was hanging out with Garett Bolles last night. All those guys are guys who I am going to be able to learn a lot from,” Risner said. “I am going to come in a hopefully be underneath their wing and learn as much as I can and earn their respect as quickly as possible.”

Lock, who may be taking some notes from McGovern about playing under center, assures his former teammate that he has become a much better QB than he was his freshman year at Mizzou when the two were on the team together.

“He got a wide-eyed freshman that first year. That was an interesting learning year for me. Without Connor and a couple of those senior guys pushing me and getting me through there, I definitely wouldn’t be the QB I am today,” Lock said, adding that he knows much more about the game now. “I’m going to be able to be in there, get into a huddle—obviously we didn’t huddle very much when I was in Missouri—but he’s going to see a confident quarterback that’s ready to roll. I’m super excited to be able to get out there on the field with him again.”