Lamar Jackson not likely to be drafted by the Denver Broncos
The Denver Broncos do not appear likely to draft former Heisman Trophy winner Lamar Jackson to be in the mix for them at quarterback…
If you were dreaming of Lamar Jackson donning the Denver Broncos orange and blue, you might as well let that dream die.
Jackson, who won the Heisman Trophy after his stellar 2016 season and was a finalist yet again in 2017, entered the 2018 NFL Draft and is eligible for teams to select.
It does not appear that team will be the Denver Broncos, unless you think Vance Joseph is giving a pretty blatant smokescreen here.
Joseph spoke about Jackson at the NFL head coaches breakfast meeting:
"“Watching his tape, first of all, he’s a special talent. He can do things that most guys can’t do—running the football, throwing the football with accuracy. He’s got a bright future. As a person, he was a fun-loving guy. But, again, 20 years old. I have a 16-year-old daughter. She’s not ready to be any kind of professional. That’s a four-year split, that’s nothing. But he’s a good kid and obviously talented. I wish him luck.”Vance Joseph (quotes via Broncos PR)"
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Saying, “I wish him luck,” is not exactly the most glowing endorsement Joseph could have given. It seems like, without coming out and saying they won’t be drafting him, Joseph is saying the Broncos don’t have interest in adding Jackson to the mix at quarterback.
It seems the Broncos are narrowing their focus at quarterback in this year’s draft to the top four guys (Josh Rosen, Sam Darnold, Baker Mayfield, Josh Allen) with the fifth overall pick, and perhaps some day two/three players like Mason Rudolph, Luke Falk, Kyle Lauletta, and Mike White.
Jackson is a very young player, and there are rumors that his not hiring an agent has been more of a hinderance in the pre-draft process than a help. He wanted to prove himself as a passer at the Scouting Combine, so he decided not to run his 40-yard dash.
While we all get the point of that, it was one of the worst decisions I think Jackson has made thus far. Running the 40-yard dash wouldn’t have hurt his stock, even though people already know how fast he is just by watching him on tape.
Jackson will perform at the Louisville pro day on Thursday, so we’ll see if the Broncos have representatives there to watch. They will almost certainly send someone there but obviously at this point, it doesn’t sound like they have much interest in taking Jackson unless he presents them a great value on day two of the draft.