FanPost

Dancing_Elephants Distraction -- Drew Lock Eval

With everything that is happening I want to start taking a look at options that might make sense with pick #17. Lock is a guy who may go top 10 but also may be there at 17.

Drew Lock – Games watched Kentucky, Florida, Alabama, South Carolina, Memphis, Georgia, Tennessee, Oklahoma State

Lock feels like a weird evaluation. His teammates are definitely letting him down and I struggled to figure out if I felt he was elevating them or part of the problem. I really didn’t like his tape after two games. Saw him do some interesting things against a tough Bama defense though. Nice game against Tennessee. See him fighting in his Bowl Game against Oklahoma State.

Area accurate not precise, tends to floats some passes or throw a little behind guys but also capable of BEAUTIFUL passes. Can make all the throws – ball leaves his hand so naturally. Effortless thrower. Throws to his left are sort of non-existent. Don’t see it happen very much and when he does roll to the left it isn’t very pretty. Much more comfortable rolling to his right. Looks fluid on the move, he will surprise you with a designed run but mostly is just buying time with his feet. When he steps forward out of the pocket seems like he doesn’t have a plan. He keeps his eyes up but can be indecisive on if he should run or not.

I feel like his pocket awareness isn’t great. There are times he can step up in the pocket and doesn’t. Other times his eyes are locked downfield and he just doesn’t feel the rush coming. Some fumbles and INT’s from hits he just doesn’t see coming. Makes some boneheaded throws but also some gutsy ones under pressure. A few times I had no idea what he was thinking or looking at as he throws into defenders. Plays from behind a lot and that’s when you see his best plays and his most mind numbing decisions. The Missou offense is pretty boring unless forced to make something happen.

Uses play action well and a bunch of his big plays come from that. He has a big arm but it’s not his deep ball that will kill you. Does have examples of beautiful deep bucket throws though Saw a 45 yard pass from the outside hash to the far sideline. Ball must have traveled 65 yards through the air. He is money on intermediate throws. 8 – 20 yard downfield is where he seems to be able to pick up chunk plays most reliably. Better thrower when he can throw strait ahead instead of towards the outside. Good success on roll out where he can align himself with a target rather than throwing from the pocket towards the edge. The ball seems to float out of bounds a little much for my comfort. He is very good at hitting screens and wide open targets, the ball gets there with good velocity and he gives them a chance to make something happen. He doesn’t seem to miss very often if a guy has space. He makes the easy stuff look easy. I am seeing him work through multiple progressions and am seeing him throw with anticipation. He is cocking back before a WR hits his breaks and he can throw into the soft spot of a zone anticipating his guy getting there.

Ball placement on contested throws leaves something to be desired. He seems to struggle to put it in a good place for his target making it easier to defend a lot of passes. Doesn’t get much help from receivers in this regard. He doesn’t seem to have targets that will high point or fight for a contested ball with consistency. Not just on contested throws seems like he throws a little behind his guys fairly often. I saw better examples of him hitting good passes into tight windows Vs. Bama and Tennessee. Doesn’t ever leave a target out to dry over the middle though. Tends to hit them in the numbers or put the ball low. Don’t see guys having to leave their feet in traffic to make a catch. I think he is a rhythm thrower makes better plays when he is in the zone but can get knocked out of it and make a few bad throws in a row.

Here is the big thing about Lock. When it comes to a franchise QB you watch the film and at the end you ask yourself a question. Do I believe he is a franchise guy? It's not a simple question -- but it is a simple answer. You have to come to a yes or a no. Watching Lock I think the answer is no. He's good enough that I think he can be an NFL starter. I see a Joe Flacco or an Andy Dalton though. That guy who will make you competitive and won't necessarily be why you lose games but who also probably isn't why you are winning them either. I wouldn't exactly be mad if he was the pick at 17. At that point I think a decent starting quarterback on a rookie contract who has a killer arm is probably good value. But I wouldn't take him at 6. I think he can give you credibility but not make opponents worry.

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