The Denver Broncos have hireD Nathaniel Hackett as head coach.
The former Packers OC most recently guided Aaron Rodgers to one if not two MVP campaigns and before that led a Blake Bortles offense to the AFC championship. When Hackett calls the plays he gets the most out of his signal-caller. That being said, who can be his next successful QB?
The media is obviously crazy about reuniting with Aaron Rodgers, but for the sake of this piece let’s disregard that narrative. Hackett gave a brief description of his offense and also the quarterback in his opening press conference.
Hackett said he looks for toughness and intelligence in a QB. And he wants QB to have “that they can’t stop me mentality.” He also said he wants to take shots downfield, work the play pass, and adjust the offense to his player’s skill sets. Sounds good and really leaves the window wide open for who the next QB will be.
What doesn’t fit is the Teddy Bridgewater and Pat Shurmur style from last year, and I’m thankful for that. What could fit is everything from (don’t hate me) Drew Lock who’s already on the team.
Aside from that he and Paton may find someone in the draft class or the plethora of names linked to the Denver Broncos from the veteran QB standpoint via trade. I’ve heard Rodgers, Russell Wilson, Deshaun Watson, Kirk Cousins, and Jimmy Garropolo along with a slew of others including Matt Ryan.
The question about all the free-agent QB names is what does the team give up to acquire the said quarterback?
George Paton was highly graded for his draft and free agency and the old regime has stockpiled some talent in their own right. So is there a trade candidate out there at the right price to better Denver for years to come or are they better off with in-house Drew Lock and potentially drafting a QB ? Or a trade candidate and give up some capital? Time will tell.