Denver Broncos NFL Draft: 1st-rounders George Paton saw at pro days

New Denver Broncos general manager George Paton has wasted very little time putting his mark on the franchise and how he wants to build the team.

Up next, the 2021 NFL Draft.

To this point in the 2021 offseason, Paton has addressed every key area on the Denver Broncos’ roster except for one — the quarterback position.

Drew Lock, the incumbent starter and 2019 second-round pick, did not play up to standard over the course of the entire 2020 season, but he showed flashes amidst his early struggles before settling in over the final five or six games of the season and playing much more efficient ball.

After watching him on tape and conferring with the coaching staff, it’s become abundantly clear that Paton likes Lock a fair amount more than people thought he might after Lock threw 15 interceptions last season.

Paton passed on the veteran free agent market. He didn’t pay the required price to get Matthew Stafford from the Detroit Lions. He made only exploratory calls on Sam Darnold. He wasn’t in on Carson Wentz.

Based on the number of options Paton has passed on at this point, it’s become clear that he’s willing to ride out the 2021 season with Drew Lock as his starting quarterback unless the right situation presents itself in the 2021 NFL Draft.

And that brings us to the subject of this post — Paton’s pre-draft pro day circuit.

Paton got his feet on the ground for a number of pro days across the country, including some involving sure-fire first-round picks.

Which players with first-round price tags has he seen and what would their fit be with the Denver Broncos?

Let’s take a look.

1. Zach Wilson, QB, BYU

We’ll mention Zach Wilson rather quickly, because there’s no chance he’s going to be a member of the Denver Broncos.

Wilson had a huge year in 2020 with BYU after having shoulder surgery before the 2019 season, completing nearly 74 percent of his passes and becoming the apple of the New York Jets’ eye.

Wilson is bound for the Big Apple after his huge 2020 campaign and he will almost undoubtedly be the no. 2 overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft. Paton got to see him throw at a wildly successful pro day in person, but he also got a chance to see a potential developmental right tackle in Brady Christensen as well as a possible late-round player at receiver in Dax Milne, whom the Broncos have had previously reported interest in as well.

2. Trey Lance, QB, North Dakota State

Unless he goes third overall to the San Francisco 49ers (who are rumored to be most interested in Alabama’s Mac Jones), there seems to be a decent chance that Trey Lance could be on the board for the Denver Broncos with the ninth overall pick.

Barring a trade up from another team like the New England Patriots, Washington Football Team, or Chicago Bears, the only teams in front of the Denver Broncos at this point that might be considering quarterback along with other positions would be the Atlanta Falcons (4) and Detroit Lions (7) and neither are considered guarantees to take QBs.

Trey Lance is a fascinating prospect.

In his lone full season as the starter for North Dakota State, he put together one of the most impressive seasons as an individual player that we have seen at any level of college football. He had 28 passing touchdowns and 14 rushing touchdowns in 16 games with zero interceptions.

Although he threw an interception in NDSU’s 2020 “showcase” game, Lance has proven he’s a playmaker out there, even though he’s as raw as they come when it comes to pure on-field experience.

Known for his tremendous work ethic, Lance is the type of ball of clay that could make some NFL team look like geniuses down the line. He can contribute immediately as a runner, but what is his potential fit with the Denver Broncos?

Very few quarterbacks with 17 or fewer college starts — much less zero against FBS competition — make it in the NFL. Lance would be the first guy to do it with literally no games against FBS programs and only 17 starts in general.

Even banking on his tremendous talent, Lance rode a dominant run-first attack with NDSU to his great 2019 campaign, averaging 18.6 pass attempts per game in his starts while the team averaged 45 rushing attempts in his starts. Furthermore, in six of Lance’s 17 starts at NDSU, he had a completion percentage of 56.5 or worse. That’s not to say he’s an inaccurate passer, but it’s worth noting.

Projecting him into an offense where spreading the ball around to a plethora of receivers is a bit of a stretch, but it’s not impossible.

Still, if Paton feels he can be a game-changer, he’s got to take him.

3. Justin Fields, QB, Ohio State

George Paton skipped Mac Jones’ second pro day to go and see Ohio State quarterback Justin Fields, and Fields did not diappoint.

To be fair, it’s rare that a quarterback does disappoint at their pro day, but I digress.

Fields was particularly impressive with the way he threw the ball around at Ohio State’s indoor practice facility, and he certainly gave Paton something to think about.

Let’s be purely honest here, though — if Paton was interested in taking Fields at pick number 9 or even trading up to get him, he would have already likely made that decision on some level. The reality is, Paton’s attendance at Fields’ pro day is indicative of the fact that his interest based on film study is legitimate, and he wanted to see how the guy works in person.

Fields was awesome in two seasons for Ohio State, perhaps saving his best for his final couple of games with the Buckeyes. After transferring from Georgia, Fields became a Heisman contender and proved to be one of the best dual-threat quarterbacks in college football.

Because of his accuracy as a passer to all levels of the field, I think Fields is a better fit for the Denver Broncos’ current offensive alignment than Trey Lance would be. With that said, scouts and pundits have discussed Fields’ need to be better at making decisions with the ball rather than being overly “methodical” and taking too long when going through his progressions.

Fields has proven he is capable of going through progressions and getting to his fourth or fifth option in a progression — that’s not the issue. The issue is making the right decision in a fraction of a second when going through them.

Is he raw enough in that regard that Paton would take him at 9 or even trade up to get him?

4/5. Micah Parsons, LB, Penn State; Jayson Oweh, EDGE, Penn State

Paton attended the Penn State pro day where the Denver Broncos brought in KJ Hamler a year ago at this time.

This time, the focus at Penn State is on the defensive side of the ball, depending on how highly Paton thinks of Penn State tight end Pat Freiermuth.

Specifically, on defense, the first-round options under the microscope were linebacker Micah Parsons and edge player Jayson Oweh. Those two did not disappoint in their workouts to say the least.

It’s clear that both of these guys are elite athletes at their positions, although they are considered raw in some regards.

Parsons, in particular, carries more question marks than areas he needs improvement on the field. Maturity has come into question with Parsons since his high school days and you have to wonder how much digging into off-field the rest of the league has had to do on him to know whether he’s worthy of a first-round investment, much less the 9th overall pick.

Oweh is still fairly new to football, but his raw talent is undeniable. He didn’t have any sacks in 2020, but he was getting all over the quarterback with pressures.

In my opinion, neither of these players are legitimate options for the Denver Broncos in the first round unless it’s in a trade-down scenario. Although Parsons has the talent to be selected 9th overall, you have to clear his off-field issues first.

If Paton does that, heck, Parsons could be a steal at 9 overall.

6. Jaycee Horn, CB, South Carolina

Although South Carolina certainly has a number of players who will be drafted in 2021, no one at that school is going to go higher than Jaycee Horn.

Horn is the son of former NFL wide receiver Joe Horn, who played some tremendous football for the New Orleans Saints once upon a time.

Horn is a physical marvel at the cornerback position, a true alpha-type on the outside who never believes he’s at a disadvantage in any matchup.

Athletically, he’s not wrong. He has the highest athletic scores of any cornerback prospect to come along in decades.

When you have a guy with this kind of combination of size, speed, quickness, explosiveness, and ball skills, you have to consider taking him. Horn is unquestionably worthy of a top 15 selection in this year’s draft, quite possibly a top-10 selection.

The Denver Broncos somewhat telegraphed their 2021 NFL Draft intentions with the signings of both Ronald Darby and Kyle Fuller, but if Horn is on the board?

That’s a situation you at least consider with Fuller on a one-year deal, Bryce Callahan and Ronald Darby’s injury history (and Callahan also being in the final year of his deal).

7. Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah, LB, Notre Dame

Although he does not fit the traditional mold size-wise at the linebacker position, Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah is one of the top playmakers defensively in the 2021 NFL Draft class.

It is not apparent at this point if the NFL views “JOK” as a top-10 overall talent or if he’s the type of guy the Denver Broncos would likely take in a trade-down scenario, but most of the talk has centered around the latter up to this point.

He played all over Notre Dame’s defensive formation, showing he is capable of playing tight coverage on anyone, including lining up at times as a slot cornerback.

This guy has unbelievable reactive quickness and while he’s not going to be taking on a ton of blocks at under 230 pounds, he’s strong and slippery in traffic, able to work under and around blocks at full speed.

Some have compared his game to that of Roquan Smith, others think he’s this year’s version of an Isaiah Simmons-type.

Denver Broncos 7-round mock draft: Sifting through latest rumors

The Denver Broncos and new GM George Paton have assembled a strong foundation. How will they add to the team in the 2021 NFL Draft?

If the Denver Broncos are not going after a quarterback in the first-round of this class, their options are wide open and Owusu-Koramoah should undoubtedly be one of them.