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Tracking every dropback by Drew Lock - Part 2

How often was Denver Broncos quarterback Drew Lock pressured and who was at fault?

NFL: Detroit Lions at Denver Broncos Isaiah J. Downing-USA TODAY Sports

The first part can be found here. This will have the data from all five of Drew Lock’s starts. A spreadsheet with all of my data so that you can check my work if you wish is here. I will include a table that shows every pressured dropback (all 56 of them) in this article.

So I looked at every dropback from Lock in 2019 - all 185 of them - and determined whether or not Lock was pressured on the play. Obviously if he was hit or sacked he was being pressured, but there was some grey area on plays where the defender got close. I had to use my judgement as to whether or not I saw Lock rushing the pass because of the proximity of the defender. If, in my determination, the defender caused Lock to rush his throw, I called it a pressure. PFF defines a QB pressure as “any time the quarterback is disturbed from his normal throwing motion from set up to release”. So while that should be fairly easy see that on the film, what about when the QB is able to complete his normal throwing motion but is hit immediately afterward. To me that is a pressure, but by PFF’s definition it would not be. PFF is not transparent with this information, even behind their paywall. I am going to be completely transparent. If you want to use the free access that is currently available to everyone at NFL GamePass and rewatch all five of the last games, you can. You can also re-do my study if you wish and come up with your own determination on each play (use the coaches film, it makes life easier).

After determining whether or not Drew Lock was pressured on a passing play, I then assigned blame. As a former center in college, I am pretty good at knowing who should be blocking whom on a giving passing play (in many offenses the center is responsible for calling out the assignments). There are some instances (you will see this in the chart) where Lock was pressured and no blocker was a fault. These are instances when the defensive scheme outmatched our blocking scheme - such as overload blitzes or all-out blitzes. I also did not count as a pressure, plays where the pressure on the QB was by-design such as screen passes.

Player Pressured Allowed in games 12-16 Snaps Games 12-16 Snaps/Pressure
Wilkinson 9.5 158 16.6
Rodgers 3.5 117 33.4
Schlottmannn 7.0 259 37.0
Risner 6.5 269 41.4
Bolles 7.0 306 43.7
McGovern 6.0 306 51.0
Leary 0.5 47 94.0
No One 10.0
Lindsay 1.5 155
Heuerman 1.5 148
Freeman 0.5 142

So I have parsed this to show the offensive lineman first. I have also included a snaps per pressure column so that you can see the relative performance level of our offensive linemen. Now, here is a table with all 56 pressures. If you don’t want to go back and rewatch whole games, you can use the play tracking within NFL GamePass, to literally just watch these plays. Again, I am more than happy to discuss a play where I have assigned blame to one player and you think it should be assigned to two or anything like that.

There was literally one play vs Jokeland Loss Vegas where all four defensive lineman met at the QB at the same time for a sack. I blamed that on the whole offensive line. You should also note that if you add the blame column it does not sum to 56. That is because I didn’t include Lock in the chart. There were a few plays where he holds onto the ball too long and gets pressured but at four or five second after the snap at which point he should have already made a decision to either throw the ball or scramble.

For those who keep pointing to Garett Bolles’ PFF score from these five games (which was something like 88.9 - second best in the league over this time-frame), this data would tend to back that score. Bolles was better than any lineman besides McGovern in terms of not allowing pressure (Leary was good, but he only played 47 snaps during the final 5 games). There will be discussion of results versus process on the next cover-2-Broncos (where I will be a guest host along with Joe R. and Jeff). Garett Bolles was getting good results, but it was not because he had changed anything he was doing. His technique now is the same as it was while he was in college. That will allow you to get by against poor edge rushers, like Dion Jordan (who is currently out of the league), but quality edge rushers will take your lunch money on a regular basis if your pass sets are as consistently bad as Bolles’. Scroll to the right to see the blame column and my notes.

Date Opp Quarter Time Down Yards Location Detail Yds Pressure Fault reason?
12/1/2019 Chargers 1 6:34 2 2 SDG 35 Drew Lock pass incomplete short left intended for Jeff Heuerman 0 yes Bolles Gets beaten on PA pass across his face
12/1/2019 Chargers 1 14:17 3 6 DEN 29 Drew Lock pass complete short left to Noah Fant for 5 yards (tackle by Adrian Phillips) 5 yes Bolles has to take inner most guy
12/1/2019 Chargers 2 0:24 1 10 DEN 33 Drew Lock pass complete short middle to DaeSean Hamilton for 7 yards (tackle by Adrian Phillips) 7 yes Bolles could feel pressure from left
12/15/2019 Chiefs 4 7:14 2 1 DEN 25 Drew Lock pass incomplete short left intended for Courtland Sutton 0 yes Bolles
12/22/2019 Lions 1 2:33 3 13 DEN 41 Drew Lock left end for 10 yards (tackle by Justin Coleman) 10 yes Bolles GB forgets snap count
12/29/2019 Raiders 2 0:45 3 6 RAI 25 Drew Lock pass complete short middle to DaeSean Hamilton for 11 yards (tackle by Curtis Riley) 11 yes Bolles Lets his man hit Dl when throwing
12/8/2019 Texans 2 1:56 1 10 HTX 34 Drew Lock pass incomplete deep middle intended for DaeSean Hamilton 0 yes Bolles and Risner DR gets shoved into Lock, Bolles gets beaten
12/15/2019 Chiefs 1 14:14 1 10 DEN 36 Drew Lock sacked by Tyrann Mathieu for no gain 0 yes coverage - no one no one open
12/8/2019 Texans 1 0:28 1 10 DEN 20 Drew Lock pass incomplete deep right intended for Tim Patrick (defended by Tashaun Gipson) 0 yes Heuerman missed delayed blitzer
12/29/2019 Raiders 3 9:11 1 10 DEN 11 Drew Lock pass incomplete short right intended for Phillip Lindsay 0 yes Heuerman and Rodgers
12/1/2019 Chargers 2 1:12 3 6 DEN 26 Drew Lock pass incomplete short left 0 yes Leary and Wilkinson
12/8/2019 Texans 3 2:47 2 10 HTX 25 Drew Lock pass deep right intended for Courtland Sutton is intercepted by Tashaun Gipson at HOU-3 and returned for 26 yards 0 yes Lindsay Lindsay should not be 1-on-1 blocking an edge defender
12/8/2019 Texans 3 14:55 1 10 DEN 43 Drew Lock sacked by Whitney Mercilus for no gain. Penalty on Bradley Roby: Defensive Holding, 5 yards (no play) 0 yes Lock (Lindsay) Asking PL to block Mercilus is dumb
12/1/2019 Chargers 3 0:37 3 9 DEN 15 Drew Lock pass complete short middle to Royce Freeman for 2 yards (tackle by Drue Tranquill) 2 yes McGovern failed to pick up switch
12/15/2019 Chiefs 1 8:23 3 2 DEN 33 Drew Lock pass complete short right to Tim Patrick for 3 yards (tackle by Tyrann Mathieu) 3 yes McGovern needed to take A-gap LB
12/15/2019 Chiefs 3 5:22 1 10 KAN 33 Drew Lock pass incomplete short left intended for Andrew Beck 0 yes McGovern fails to switch
12/22/2019 Lions 2 4:02 1 10 DET 47 Drew Lock left end for 3 yards (tackle by Steve Longa) 3 yes McGovern
12/22/2019 Lions 3 14:19 2 8 DEN 49 Drew Lock pass complete short middle to DaeSean Hamilton for 16 yards (tackle by Tracy Walker) 16 yes McGovern
12/29/2019 Raiders 3 6:26 2 12 DEN 49 Drew Lock pass incomplete deep left intended for Courtland Sutton. Penalty on Erik Harris: Unnecessary Roughness, 15 yards 0 yes McGovern and Schlottmann
12/1/2019 Chargers 1 8:38 1 10 DEN 31 Drew Lock pass incomplete deep right intended for Jeff Heuerman 0 yes no one Bosa recognizes naked bootleg
12/8/2019 Texans 1 9:08 2 7 HTX 41 Drew Lock pass complete short left to Andrew Beck for 29 yards (tackle by Justin Reid) 29 yes no one free rusher on delayed blitz
12/8/2019 Texans 4 5:41 1 10 DEN 40 Drew Lock pass incomplete short left intended for DaeSean Hamilton 0 yes no one or Drew Lock - hot read throw
12/15/2019 Chiefs 3 2:33 4 6 KAN 16 Drew Lock pass short right is intercepted by Tyrann Mathieu at KC-8 and returned for 12 yards. Penalty on Charvarius Ward: Defensive Holding, 5 yards (no play) 0 yes no one cover 0 blitz against empty
12/15/2019 Chiefs 4 4:52 4 10 KAN 33 Drew Lock pass incomplete short right intended for DaeSean Hamilton 0 yes no one overload blitz on right
12/15/2019 Chiefs 4 5:02 2 10 KAN 33 Drew Lock pass incomplete short middle intended for Tim Patrick 0 yes no one 6 rushers overload left
12/29/2019 Raiders 3 7:33 1 10 RAI 49 Drew Lock pass complete short right to Phillip Lindsay for 6 yards (tackle by Clelin Ferrell). Penalty on Jake Rodgers: Illegal Block Above the Waist, 10 yards (no play) 0 yes no one by design on the play
12/29/2019 Raiders 4 3:05 2 15 DEN 20 Drew Lock pass incomplete short middle intended for Noah Fant (defended by Maxx Crosby) 0 yes no one play design
12/1/2019 Chargers 1 4:40 3 8 SDG 26 Drew Lock pass complete deep right to Courtland Sutton for 26 yards, touchdown 26 yes no one - overload blitz
12/1/2019 Chargers 3 9:05 3 5 DEN 25 Drew Lock pass incomplete deep right intended for Noah Fant 0 yes Risner Ignram beats him with wicked spin move
12/15/2019 Chiefs 2 4:20 2 11 DEN 38 Drew Lock pass incomplete short right intended for Courtland Sutton 0 yes Risner Jones whips him with rip/swim
12/15/2019 Chiefs 2 6:24 1 10 DEN 25 Drew Lock pass incomplete short left intended for Phillip Lindsay 0 yes Risner doesn't pick up stunt
12/22/2019 Lions 2 0:33 3 6 DET 16 Drew Lock pass incomplete short right intended for Courtland Sutton 0 yes Risner
12/29/2019 Raiders 3 9:06 2 10 DEN 11 Drew Lock pass complete short middle to DaeSean Hamilton for 17 yards (tackle by Erik Harris) 17 yes Risner
12/1/2019 Chargers 1 5:06 2 8 SDG 26 Drew Lock pass complete short right to Phillip Lindsay for no gain (tackle by Desmond King) 0 yes Risner and Bolles Risner lets man go free at POA on screen. Bolles gets pushed all the way into the QB
12/29/2019 Raiders 3 7:09 1 20 DEN 41 Drew Lock pass complete short left to Devontae Booker for 8 yards (tackle by Lamarcus Joyner and Daryl Worley) 8 yes Risner and Rodgers
12/29/2019 Raiders 1 14:14 3 6 DEN 26 Drew Lock pass incomplete deep right intended for Courtland Sutton 0 yes Rodgers
12/29/2019 Raiders 1 14:18 2 6 DEN 26 Drew Lock pass incomplete short middle intended for Tim Patrick 0 yes Rodgers
12/22/2019 Lions 3 3:06 3 8 DEN 27 Drew Lock pass incomplete short right intended for Courtland Sutton. Penalty on Darius Slay: Defensive Pass Interference, 13 yards (no play) 0 yes Rodgers and Freeman
12/8/2019 Texans 1 10:26 1 10 DEN 8 Drew Lock pass complete short right to Noah Fant for 48 yards (tackle by Tashaun Gipson) 48 yes Schlottmann
12/8/2019 Texans 2 15:00 3 9 DEN 21 Drew Lock pass complete deep left to Tim Patrick for 37 yards (tackle by Vernon Hargreaves and Justin Reid) 37 yes Schlottmann gets whipped - hit allowed
12/8/2019 Texans 3 4:12 3 4 HTX 30 Drew Lock right end for 5 yards (tackle by Zach Cunningham) 5 yes Schlottmann
12/22/2019 Lions 2 12:32 2 18 DEN 12 Drew Lock pass complete short left to Courtland Sutton for 2 yards (tackle by Darius Slay) 2 yes Schlottmann
12/22/2019 Lions 4 3:52 3 3 DEN 25 Drew Lock pass complete short right to Devontae Booker for 2 yards (tackle by Tavon Wilson and Jalen Reeves-Maybin) 2 yes Schlottmann
12/22/2019 Lions 4 7:30 3 4 DET 43 Drew Lock pass complete short left to Tim Patrick for 16 yards (tackle by Rashaan Melvin) 16 yes Schlottmann and McGovern
12/15/2019 Chiefs 4 9:45 3 14 KAN 42 Drew Lock pass incomplete short middle intended for Tim Patrick 0 yes Schlottmann and Wilkinson
12/29/2019 Raiders 1 4:34 3 4 RAI 47 Drew Lock sacked by and Johnathan Hankins for -9 yards and Maxx Crosby for -9 yards -9 yes whole OL
12/1/2019 Chargers 1 0:21 3 5 SDG 5 Drew Lock pass complete short right to Courtland Sutton for 5 yards, touchdown 5 yes Wilkinson
12/1/2019 Chargers 2 0:06 2 5 SDG 47 Drew Lock pass incomplete short left 0 yes Wilkinson
12/1/2019 Chargers 2 0:12 1 10 DEN 48 Drew Lock up the middle for 5 yards (tackle by Drue Tranquill) 5 yes Wilkinson Bosa beats EW badly
12/1/2019 Chargers 4 4:36 3 12 SDG 34 Drew Lock pass incomplete short middle intended for DaeSean Hamilton 0 yes Wilkinson
12/8/2019 Texans 4 11:18 3 16 DEN 19 Drew Lock sacked by Jacob Martin for -8 yards -8 yes Wilkinson sack
12/15/2019 Chiefs 1 5:42 3 5 KAN 48 Drew Lock sacked by Alex Okafor for -9 yards -9 yes Wilkinson beaten by outside rush
12/15/2019 Chiefs 2 12:51 2 10 DEN 25 Drew Lock pass complete short right to Royce Freeman for 5 yards (tackle by Bashaud Breeland and Kendall Fuller) 5 yes Wilkinson gets pushed back into DL's face
12/15/2019 Chiefs 4 9:40 4 14 KAN 42 Drew Lock pass incomplete short right intended for DaeSean Hamilton 0 yes Wilkinson
12/8/2019 Texans 3 13:40 2 9 DEN 49 Drew Lock pass complete short right to Courtland Sutton for 3 yards (tackle by Johnathan Joseph) 3 yes Wilkinson and Schlottmann EW gets puched back in to DL, AS fails to switch

We should also note that Dalton Risner was not very good in the final five games. He had hit the “rookie wall”. I fully expect him to play at the high level that he did in the first part of the season for the entirety of the 2020 season, assuming we have one.

Poll

After seeing this data has your opinion of the play of our offensive line...

This poll is closed

  • 7%
    Improved greatly
    (40 votes)
  • 44%
    improved a little
    (235 votes)
  • 27%
    not changed
    (142 votes)
  • 16%
    worsened somewhat - Lock made them look better than they are/were
    (89 votes)
  • 3%
    worsened dramatically - our whole OL was crap in 2019. I sure hope Lock can stay healthy in 2020.
    (19 votes)
525 votes total Vote Now