Subscribe to our newsletter!
Denver Broncos 2021 Fantasy Football
Intro 00:05
You’re listening to the good old boys fantasy football podcast. Now here’s your host, Kevin, Derek and Alex.
Derek 00:14
Alrighty, welcome in ladies and gentlemen to another episode of the good old boys fantasy football Podcast. I am Derek and I am joined as always by your co host, Kevin and Alex. Guys. How are we doing tonight?
Kevin 00:23
Doing good. back in the saddle here after missing last week. Sorry, everybody you missed out on my hot takes for the Carolina Panthers. But I’m pretty sure Derek covered all the DJ Moore love that we have for him. So on to the next one. And Alex, how are you doing at? Yeah, go ahead and answer. Nope. Nevermind. I don’t care because we get to talk to hometown team. We get to talk the Denver Broncos and the colossal mess of a dumpster fire that John Elway had put them in over the course of the last five seasons.
Alex 00:58
Yeah. My breakups year in and year out, keep happening. Yeah, I keep going back. And boy, they just keep finding new ways to hurt me. The Denver Broncos do so I’m so excited to take a look at the oh so exciting 2021 prospects of the Denver Broncos. What was once a proud organization.
Derek 01:22
So if y’all haven’t figured out yet, the team of the week is the Denver Broncos. And we’re gonna hit those guys up before we get there. If you haven’t done so already, go over to the website. goodoldboysff.com. That’s goodoldboysff.com and check it out. Sign up for the newsletter. Don’t miss a thing coming from the good old boys. Get your advice to win cash and trophies. Let’s go ahead and jump right on into the Denver Broncos who suffice it to say head yet another disappointing year for Denver Broncos fans which we all are. So we’ll start where we always do that was in the running back room. Melvin Gordon who finished running back 13 in fantasy last year, 215 yards or 215 rushes 986 yards, nine touchdowns, 32 receptions on 44 targets for an additional 158 through the air and one receiving touchdown guys. What are your thoughts on Melvin Gordon?
Melvin Gordon: Denver Broncos RB
Kevin 02:23
After that Melvin Gordon was the one piece of the Denver Broncos who did what we paid him to do last year. Like I feel like he got in the endzone nine times like when we brought in Melvin Gordon, that’s what we brought him in for. He has a nose for the end zone and use it and and he did nine touchdowns for Melvin Gordon, he is the one Denver Bronco that I was not utterly disappointed with. I expect that to continue and if the Broncos can find a way to actually get a lead in some of these football games, I expect his stats to increase I think that nine touchdown that might be a little bit tough. Eight Nine now it’s probably realistic I guess. But I think he’ll be back over 1000 yards next year. I think you will eclipse that as the Broncos improve offensively hopefully can find their Mojo a little bit more some a few less three and outs so you don’t have Drew Lock just turning the ball over left right and center but in the Gordon is a solid RB two for fantasy purposes. I think that he will finish top 15 again and and he’s the guy that you can pick up a little bit later he’s not the sexy name anymore so you can get him a little bit you know kind of on the cheap if you will. A lot of people are looking over him but with Philip Lindsay being a free agent, there’s a chance that he’s going to have that backfield all to himself. And if that’s the case, he’s probably going to see an extra 60 touches 70 touches between the receptions and the carries that that Lindsey screen up he’ll see some Royce Freeman and we’ll see some they might bring another guy in he’ll probably see a couple whatever but I expect Gordon to probably have another top 15 finish and his yardage total will improve it’s just a matter of where his touchdowns fall will kind of depend on his final ranking.
Alex 04:23
That to me is the big thing is is those nine touchdowns were great and you know that that’s exactly what you said Kevin, we paid him to come here and score touchdowns and he did that. It’s just they were very sporadic. While he did that he did have three three games with with two touchdowns, two rushing touchdowns this year. So that that is you know, it’d be nicer if those were a little bit more spread out. But also this is kind of indicative of who the Denver Broncos were this this past season where they couldn’t I don’t think the offense could ever Figure out how to use a Melvin Gordon with a Philip Lindsay and well you know Lindsay missed some time but I agree with you he did miss a game and he ended up you know only 14 yards shy of 1000 yards so I’m with you that Melvin Gordon will be 1000 yard rusher again the the solid RB two and right right with you there Kevin. You know it all kind of hinges on the touchdowns and if he can get to that eight nine Mark again then you’d be pretty happy with him.
Derek 05:29
Yeah, I mean when you look at it, he definitely was a guy that when you drafted him last year he well outperformed as ADP was the 18th running back off the board taken right there at kind of the 4.01, 4.02 pick as far as drafts were concerned and was a guy that finished just outside of number 12 so I’ll finish as you know very early or very far up there in running back to territory but was the 10th overall consistency ranked running back for for you so it was one of those that when you drafted them you drafted them to be for sure your second running back to even your third running back in some cases. And that was one that you were very happy with your performance even though some of it was a little bit sporadic here and there he was still the 10th overall consistency running back. So not a guy that you’re going to be upset about having you know having to have trot out there and then running back to or flex position. I see him in that same kind of position again this coming year. I’m one of those if I’m I’m gonna put him currently in that that late third round type of draft grade for me and I think that it probably finished running back 1415 somewhere in there. But Kevin, I’m taking the over with you on the 1000 yards. So moving on over to Philip Lindsay. Philip Lindsay 65th finished last year 118 rush attempts, 502 yards, one rushing touchdown, seven receptions on 14 attempts for 28 yards. Guys, your thoughts on Philip Lindsay.
Philip Lindsay: Denver Broncos RB
Kevin 07:02
Honestly, Lindsay’s numbers, mirrored Melvin Gordon’s, for the most part right your your average per rush attempt 4.6 and 4.3. Gordon had a longest 65 Lindsay out along at 55. You know where the big difference in these guys are? Lindsay doesn’t get in the end zone very well, like he has a smaller body. This was the problem and why they brought Melvin Gordon in Melvin Gordon is the back that they wanted Royce Freeman to be when they drafted him a few years ago right like they wanted Royce Freeman to be a poor man’s Melvin Gordon, and he could just never get it going. And that being said, I think Lindsay’s I think this is probably about what you get for Lindsey on average why so you can see him back up at 800 yards rushing you might see him getting in zone three maybe four times a year so he you know you’re looking at a back end RV three top end RV for at that point like he is a he is a flex play on by weeks. He is a guy that you have for depth in case things go wrong on your fantasy team. But Philip Lindsay has shown that he’s just he’s not the answer. He can’t carry that number one running back mantle. And, and a lot a lot of that is because he cannot get in the end zone. And that is his. That’s his Achilles heel, he can do a lot of different things. But when you get inside the 10 yard line, Philip Lindsay becomes obsolete and if you’re in number one running back in this league, you got to find a way to get in and get six
Alex 08:46
say the other thing that really hurt Philip Lindsay last year was his ability to stay on the field and healthy he missed five games last year. And that’s not something you’re looking for. You know, when it comes to a fantasy run you you need that consistency. You need somebody who you can plug in their week in and week out. And yes, you know, you still got 500 yards out of the whole deal. But you’re right Kevin, I think that the fact that he couldn’t stay on the field and stay healthy. It really really diminishes the you know, usage that you’re going to get out of him as a fantasy player. So I know that there’s a lot of people that were that were kind of high on him and then you know obviously the Melvin Gordon deal happened and it was kind of the Oh, what’s it going to be? Is it going to be Philip Lindsay? Well, I think all along we knew that the Broncos weren’t ever going to see Philip Lindsay as a as their Bell cow running back because he just isn’t that’s just not the way he’s built. I’m a little cautious when it comes to Philip Lindsay And truth be told, you know, it comes down to it and I’m picking and I’ve got the option of Philip Lindsay or probably literally anybody else and I’m gonna go literally anybody else.
Derek 09:56
Yeah, you look back to when Philip Lindsay was very productive For fantasy, because his rookie year and sophomore year, he definitely had some some very good finishes. But it was because he was very, very efficient with the workload given. He was 1000 yard rusher both of those seasons. But he typically was about five yards a carry, and getting, you know, 200 carries a year, I don’t think that we’re going to see him get that kind of workload, again, he’s going to be a change of pace kind of guy. For a team out there, he’s not going to be the bell cow, as you, as you already stated. So he’s a guy that I’ll kind of let sit and ride and, you know, if I, if he’s there in the 11th, or 12th, round, sure, probably pick them up, take a flyer on him and see what happens. Because he does have the ability to have a lot of upside depending on if he’s getting 200 plus carries on a season. I just don’t see him getting back to that. Again,
Alex 10:53
the best use that I can see for a Philip Lindsay, if you are going to draft him is to sell after he has a really good game. And try and take advantage of somebody who can’t see past recency bias, he has the ability to have a really good game. And if that happens before your leagues trade deadline, that that will benefit you nicely.
Derek 11:15
Royce Freeman still in that running back room in Denver, and he decided to talk about Royce Freeman, none whatsoever. Alrighty, let’s go ahead and move on over to the wide receiver room. And there’s just kind of a lot going on in the Denver wide receiver room. Unlike a couple weeks ago, when we talked about Detroit where it was, you know, there’s like one guy on the roster for next year that we know about. But the Broncos have kind of the opposite problem where they’ve got a ton of a ton of good receivers and a ton of good options there. And it’s kind of a nebulous situation. But let’s go ahead and start with Courtland Sutton, who had a very shortened injury field season, going down in week two. And really, the stats at this point will throw him out the window, because he only had one game that he played and saw six targets. So guys, what are your thoughts of Courtland Sutton going into this year?
Courtland Sutton: Denver Broncos WR
Kevin 12:07
Bring it back. So if we go back to the end of the 2018, season Courtland Sutton and drew Lock did show some very, very good chemistry together Courtland Sutton went out of his way to catch some pretty, not great passes from Drew Lock, but
Alex 12:29
it made both horrific horrific passes, I would say,
Kevin 12:33
fair enough horrific. But Courtland Sutton is a number one in this league. He is a big body guy, he can high point the ball, he is good in the end zone. He can you know, kind of that basketball box out your defender type thing to gain position and do all that like Courtland Sutton is a very, very good receiver. And he will make a world of difference coming back to this Denver Broncos offense. I think because of the injury last year, he’s going to get forgotten about here just a little bit. But I see him being a very solid wide receiver too for a team. And and depending on how your draft board falls, I mean, heck, I could see not in our home league right because everybody’s a Broncos fan. And you know all the Broncos go earlier than what they should but in a in a kind of a normal league. I could see Courtland Sutton slipping right to the sixth seventh round. I could see people slipping on him and take another option. Do you have your shiny new toys, your all these other things. And Denver’s offense sucks and drew long. I mean, just the rhetoric that goes around with that. And Courtland Sutton is a guy that you can get a lot of good value on it because he’s, he does all the things well, he’s effective in the redzone. He has a very good catch rate. And he is up until this freak thing in 2020. He was always available, right? Like he was always there on the field. He fought through injuries. This was obviously severe. But I expect big big things on him. I have him as a sneaky play. Some low end wide receiver one upside if you’re not careful. But he’s a guy that I’m definitely keeping on my radar.
Alex 14:30
So everybody else that we talked about in this wide receiver room, I’m going to say that their biggest hindrance will be who is throwing them the football and I that’s I mean that sincerely in that Drew Lock is not the answer at quarterback for the Denver Broncos. That being said Courtland Sutton is one of the guys that I’m not concerned about whoever’s throwing him a football because I think you still get his. You talked about Okay, his catch radius. I mean, he hides a lot of flaws. When it comes to quarterback play, and that was very evident last year, when you watch the Broncos, they were just missing that guy that could hide some of those flaws at the quarterback spot. So I’m with you, Kevin, I think that he’s got, you know, low end wide receiver one potential for sure a solid wide receiver to in the league and that is no matter who is throwing in the football because he’s just that good.
Derek 15:27
I don’t know that he’ll make it even in, you know, non non Denver football fans leaves. I don’t know in a standard league that he’s going to make it down there to the to the sixth or seventh. I think he probably comes off the board in about the fifth. So I’m, I’m with you. I don’t I think you’ll get forgotten about a little bit. But I think that you’ll see kind of that ADP, probably somewhere in the fifth round. Yeah, but I do see him taking probably wide receiver 2425 off the board. So you could definitely see him in that kind of that that wide receiver run that second wide receiver run there is where I kind of see him when it comes to draft a as far as season long finish. I think I’m right there with you. I think I’m going to probably see him finishing 15 1617 kind of in that range. But he definitely does have the upside and could be very sneaky for somebody. So lots of good things there. Jerry Juedy, finished as wide receiver 44 this past year, 52 receptions, 113 targets 856 yards, three touchdowns. Guys, your thoughts on Jerry, Juedy,
Jerry Juedy: Denver Broncos WR
Kevin 16:37
and Jerry Juedy, really struggled being tossed into this number one receiver role. I think at times, he was just trying to play outside of himself a little bit, I think that’s what created a very large amount of these drops like he was he was looking to make the second move, even before he before he caught the ball. And it caused a little bit of lack of focus. I expect him to get that right in the offseason. He is a very, very good route runner. Still, I think that him and Courtland Sutton on opposite sides is a awesome duo for young wide receivers that will give Drew Lock and options here. His targets will go down, I don’t think he’s going to see 113 targets again, this next season, I think that’s probably going to dip down. Oh, probably somewhere in like the 85 to 90 type range. But I do expect his receptions and touchdown to both climb as well. So the you know, 8590 targets. But if he’s much more efficient with them, and you see 70 grabs out of 90 targets. You know, it might be a little bit pie in the sky. And I realized that but again, all of this is because you have your true number one back, you’re spreading the defense’s, across the field a little bit that can’t just key in on one guy. And it will give Juedy the chance to excel as he’s working through the offseason, continuing his route running and really focusing on catching the football. Before he does anything else you have to catch the ball.
Alex 18:21
What I think and this obviously is pure speculation. But what I think happened to Jerry, Juedy, Kevin, you’re right. There were so many things working against these rookies this year. And then throw on top of that, you know, the guy that you were supposed to be, you know, playing second fiddle to goes down. And now you get that thrown on top of you of having to be the guy in the offense and an offense that you’re, you know, essentially still learning as you step on the field for the first time and see real live game reps. So I think that that kind of hindered his development this year, and we saw flashes, obviously, you know, he had some good games. But I think that, you know, the weight of all of that, really, really put a hindrance on who he actually is, as a receiver. I think he’s a great compliment, like you said, Kevin to Courtland Sutton, I think that, you know, the two of those guys will, when they’re on the field at the same time will be a difference maker and it will make the Denver offense a little bit more dynamic. It will cut into his looks. I you know, you you said 85 I thought that was going to be kind of the upper end of where I’d see his targets this next year. But you know, still with 85 if he’s you know, 85 and those catches come up a little bit and he’s in the 6570 range for catches, which is asking a lot but I know that’s a that’s a lot. I still think that with his ability, you know, you’re still looking at a guy that’s gonna be, you know, flirtin with 800 yards still and will have had the ability to get in the end zone. So I look at this last year is kind of for this entire Broncos team really because of how deficient they were in the receiver room, and how kind of the just the offense in general just didn’t play very well. I kind of throw it out. I don’t see that really being a thing. This could be, you know, wishful thinking as a Broncos fan that they might actually be relevant again. But yeah, I think with Sutton back and Juedy opposite him. It spells good things for Jerry Juedy.
Derek 20:44
Yeah, again, I think that’s one of those that those two will play off of each other very well. Jerry, Juedy, for this year for fantasy? Yeah, I’m not as high on him going into this year, as I was last year, I really thought that we were going to see him come out in and put up a performance that really outperformed your draft position form. But that was not that just wasn’t there.
Alex 21:08
But that that was also, you know, kind of under the pretense that Courtland Sutton wouldn’t be on the field too. Right, is that?
Derek 21:16
It was but it also was one that you I think we now saw, you know, going into this last season, I had a ton of question marks around drew Lock and what that was going to look like. And those questions, I think, had been realized that it’s, he’s not the guy, he’s not going to be the guy there. So there’s a lot more hope in the quarterback room on this one going into it. Couple that with the fact that you had a premier wide receiver, one talent lining up across from him to really take the spotlight as far as the defense goes. So that being the case, a little bit further down on Jerry, Juedy, but if he’s down there, about where he got drafted this last year, I’m gonna take a flyer on that one, because the talent level is there.
Alex 22:00
And let’s not forget to there is, you know, all of these guys essentially missed a game, you know, whether or not they were on the field, because because had to throw out a wide recent practice squad wide receiver at quarterback for one of these games. So all of these guys throw out, you know, they all missed the game, in terms of their production, and so that, you know, take that into account as well, in terms of what they actually did this past season. here’s, here’s what that game played no effect on for Jerry, Juedy. His catch, right? I’m with you. There, I’m with you, if you didn’t have the chance to catch anything in one of those games,
Kevin 22:41
but that’s fine. But 50, 52 receptions on 113 targets. That’s a 47 and a half percent catch rate. That is unacceptable in the NFL.
Alex 22:51
Yeah. I’m right there with you.
Kevin 22:54
If you were able to work on that and get that up to a 70 75% catch rate, kind of in line with where the mean is for the NFL. And that’s why I’m not so worried about the targets. I think most of the targets are going to go come away from Tim Patrick. Not necessarily Jerry, Juedy. And we’ll get into that here in just a second. I know we’re moving to that. But I can see the Broncos. Tim Patrick is stuck being the odd man out unless they can convince Jerry Juedy to go out of the slot. And and not saying that he can’t because his footwork and his route running is absolutely good enough to do that. But then what’s the point in drafting KJ Hamler and Desean Hamilton, if you’re just gonna turn on stick Juedy in the slot all the time. So there’s a lot of different things formation wise, but as we transition over here to Tim Patrick will kind of see why he deserves at least some good playing time. Like he did his share of things to stay on the field for the Broncos. Right?
Derek 23:59
Right. So let’s go ahead and just head right on over to Tim Patrick their finishes wide receiver 41. He had 51 receptions, 79 targets 742 yards and six touchdowns. Your thoughts on Tim Patrick?
Tim Patrick: Denver Broncos WR
Kevin 24:15
He is a another six four wide receiver to kind of pair with Courtland Sutton Sutton’s upside is much higher. But Tim Patrick has some fight and some want to and and that’s just hard to teach guys. Tim Patrick wants to play football he wants to get better. Is he going to be a Pro Bowl wide receiver? No, he’s not. But you went into that serviceable piece right? We’re talking about that in a previous show Derek like he is a very serviceable third or fourth wide receiver option for this team who is capable of stepping up in instances and kind of being a good stop gap. If someone has to miss a series They’re dinged up or what that is, Patrick can help fill that gap. He’s not going to overcome the loss of a Courtland Sutton. We saw that last year. But he did everything he could. For all intents and purposes. He was the number one receiver on the Broncos last year. It wasn’t Jerry, Juedy. Even though Juedy saw an extra 30 targets. It was Tim Patrick who kind of rallied that receiving core around him and found ways to get into the end zone and found ways to move the chains like Juedy was dropping those passes left and right to Tim Patrick was trying to make a name for himself. And I think that’s going to carry over here a little bit. And we’ll see him with some decent run here for this coming season.
Alex 25:45
So obviously, for fantasy, you know, mostly, you’re going to get that bonus for getting up over 100 yards, right when it comes to your fantasy points, 100 100 receiving yards, 100 rushing or whatever it is, but you get kind of those bonus points. And Tim Patrick, got you some of those bonus points last year, yeah. three games over 100 yards. But it was also kind of, excuse me. Yeah, three games over 100 yards. But it was also kind of a feast or famine with with Tim Patrick. Just because you know, he wasn’t getting the looks that, you know, obviously Jerry Juedy was getting. He is a guy that you know, as as a Broncos fan. He’s one of those guys that you root for, that you hope has some success. But I just think when it comes down to it, you know that you’re going to we knew going into last season, there was going to be a lot of mouths to feed in this Denver Broncos offense and you throw you know, take Courtland Sutton out of that equation. Still plenty of mouths to feed in that wide receiver room. But Tim Patrick is a guy that, you know, I don’t see his production being the same this year with a healthy Courtland Sutton which is a real shame because I think he is, you know, serviceable wide receiver that I can get what you’re asking of him. As far as fantasy relevance this next year, it’s gonna be a little tougher, because obviously those other guys will have a full season under their belt, you know, some of those young guys. And it’s just I think it’s just going to be a case of Tim Patrick being passed up on versus, you know, what his actual value is?
Derek 27:21
Right now, that’s probably pretty fair. And, you know, for fantasy purposes last year, Tim Patrick was was more than you could have hoped for. If you got Tim Patrick early on in the season, right? Like, he’s a guy that wasn’t drafted. He was a waiver wire type of pickup and was very serviceable on weeks that you were able to throw him in. Right, you were talking a little bit about feast famine type of thing. But he finished the season ranked wide receiver 41 on the season with the 44th overall consistency. So again, it was one of those that he was consistent in getting to 41 type of thing where he wasn’t drastically out or underperforming, where he was ranked at on the season. And he’s a guy that I again, I think he’ll be a guy that will have some spots next year. And it could be a very interesting DFS play, depending upon matchup type of thing. But for season long fantasy, he’s a guy that I’m probably going to stay away from and would look more as a waiver wire type of pickup when needed. So let’s go ahead and any desire to talk about KJ Hamler Desean Hamilton,
Kevin 28:28
I think one of those two guys is going to be the predominant slot guy. We just got to kind of wait and see who that is, hey, handlers. Biggest thing against him is he’s he’s great. He’s that waterbug but he’s only five nine guys like he’s, he gets lost at times running in the slot because he’s running behind the linemen in front of the linebackers like and because he’s only five line. If you don’t get that ball to him in open space, there’s nothing he’s going to be able to do. So his success is largely dependent on the ability of the offensive line to keep Drew Lock or whoever’s throwing passes in Denver upright. If they’re able to keep their quarterback protected and give him a little bit of time handler is going to provide a little bit of flash. He’s going to provide some excitement and some different things but if the quarterbacks feeling rushed, those targets aren’t going to hammer they’re going to end up going to know a fan because he’s a bigger bodied target who has a much better chance of actually coming down with a ball.
Derek 29:34
Speaking of old Noah Fant. Let’s go ahead and head on over to the tight end room. And no offense finished tied in number 12. Last year 62 targets 90 I’m sorry. 62 receptions. 93. Targets 673 yards, three touchdowns. Guys your thoughts on Noah Fant.
Noah Fant: Denver Broncos TE
Kevin 29:52
I expect fancy numbers to be a little to improve. based off of his reception. His touchdown totals, I think the target They’re probably going to be about the same. I think you’re looking at somewhere in that 85 to 90 minute target range, much like Jerry Juedy was. But I think three to three touchdowns is probably a little light for No offense, I would expect him to find a way to get up to six or seven. And I would also expect him to have a few more open looks with Sutton being back right. Again, coverage is going to be shifting. safeties aren’t going to be able to key in on fans as he’s kind of coming across. So he’s going to end up with a couple more gimmies that go along with that. So, you know, I could see him with 70, receptions on 90 targets. So again, just a little bit of a bump, but that’s probably good enough to get him to 730 740 yards, and a couple extra those fall into the endzone and that puts him from Titan 12 up to about Titan eight. And that’s probably about right, I think he is a top 10 tight end for fantasy in the 2021 season. Yeah, I’m,
Alex 30:54
I’m right there with you, Kevin. I expect you know, obviously for him to fall into the end zone a few more times and a little hiccup in the in the receptions area should help with that. So that I’m right there with you. I think that you know, top 10 tight end is not out of the question for Noah fan. Even with Drew Lock. Still at quarterback. I think that that’s that’s a fair assessment of of where he is. And in a tight end premium. I mean, the dude was the dude was pretty consistent. You know? I mean, he was he was pretty consistent in terms of what you could expect out of him week in and week out. And in the tight end spot. consistency is key. And it’s nice to trot that out there week in and week out.
Kevin 31:36
When you started out the year on fire. Yeah. Then there’s kind of that dead spot, right like the Broncos didn’t adjust Well, in finding new and creative ways to get him the football after defense adjusted to how Denver originally came out and decided they were going to feed no offense like they, they the Broncos need to do a better job of creating ways of getting your playmakers the ball. And no offense is absolutely one of those playmakers that they need to get engaged more often.
Alex 32:08
And he’s on the field, he’s on the field a ton. You know,
Derek 32:10
you’re talking about him being consistent. Last year, he was consistently a tight into weekend week out, and not really a guy that you were looking to put on your fantasy rosters week in week out there as well. Right, so finished number 12 with consistency ranking of numbers, number 17. However, out of the 16 weeks, 12 of those weeks, he finished tied in 13. Or worse on the on that single week. So he was a guy that largely disappointed for fantasy, a guy that was typically taken in kind of that that second run of tight ends up there, you know, some sneak up there as high as as round six, but it was typically kind of a round eight nine type of deal. But in that case, I think you’ll see him probably taken again, probably round 910 somewhere in there. And as a guy that all probably let him sit there again, I don’t know that I’m that big a fan of what Drew Lock is is going to bring to the table when trying to get the ball to a tight end. Even though we’ve seen it a little bit here with no offense. I don’t know that you’re going to see enough of an uptick in this Broncos offense for him to sneak up there around, you know, eight or nine I’d probably keep him right about where he’s at where he finished this year, probably around, probably finishing around number 12 or 13 on the season.
Alex 33:36
But again, I in going back to the point that Kevin made with Courtland Sutton back I think that frees up things for Noah fan and I really do I think like Courtland Sutton was such a huge gaping hole in the Broncos offense this year. That, you know, obviously the Broncos didn’t adjust to defenses and how they were playing no offense. But I think we get in Courtland Sutton back I think that helps out that those touchdown numbers go up. The reception numbers go up. And so I’m I’m comfortable in evaluating him as a you know, a low end. Tight End one and extremely high end tied into
Derek 34:18
I seem fringe tight end one territory for me. So yeah, kind of right where you’re saying, how many times you see the Broncos throwing the ball this coming year, could be a little bit more could be a little less, call it 500.
Alex 34:30
Well, you also need to take into consideration that the Broncos are going to be trailing a lot. So throwing a football is going to be a little high. I know 500 easy math, but I think 550 is probably closer to
Derek 34:43
550.
Kevin 34:44
It’s their efficiency on third down. That’s what the linchpin of this is. The Broncos aren’t going three and out this number could easily touch 650 because they’re going to be extending drives, right. If they continue to go three and out That’s where we’re gonna have problems. So can can Drew Lock improve upon his 57% completion percentage? Can Can he get to 63%? Can he get to 65%? You know, we don’t need him to be Drew Brees and be at, or, you know, 72 or whatever that is. But you know, in all seriousness, can he get above 60? Because if he gets above 60, that’ll help and all that things. So, I guess, if 550 is where it was last year as a team on with one game of only throwing the ball one time, so it really should be closer to five at 600 then 650. I’ll tell you 650 plus.
Derek 35:48
So, the question that I have for you then is how many of those targets Do you see going Cortland sentence weigh? 120. Okay, how about Jerry, Juedy?
Kevin 35:57
90.
Derek 35:58
So we’re 210. How about Tim Patrick?
Alex 36:04
Oh, he’s like 50.
Kevin 36:07
I think I’ll see like 70.
Derek 36:09
Okay, so we’re, it’s called 280. Right there. We’re almost halfway home. What about Desean Hamilton? Or KJ Hamler can combine the two of those two together? That’s probably going to be another 65 570. Yeah, you’re talking 350? in that range?
Kevin 36:27
No, there are 9494 fans. For the running backs.
Derek 36:35
Okay. So I guess that was kind of a thing I was getting to is how do you see that distribution coming up there? And do you see no effect really taking the you know, the lion’s share? Because really going through that process, you’re talking about him getting being second and targets only to Courtland Sutton as far as that goes. But they’ve got another tight end there that they showed some promise very early on. And again, an injury shorten that up considerably. But is that a deal where you see these two tight ends? cannibalize each other a little bit this year? And does that take off some of the upside for fat?
Kevin 37:21
No, because you draft fat in the first round be your guy like, and it’s not that fat has showed that he can’t. This is an offensive scheme thing. This is a quarterback shitting the bed thing this is not a No offense, not able to do it thing. He had a couple of drops as a rookie that we all kind of shook our head at this past season, he really seemed to improve upon that, like he didn’t have you know, a lot of those major homerun plays that just went through his fingertips like it did in 2019. So we’re with Albert O back there or with Troy Fumagalli back there like blocking like those guys are in there for blocking so that way the Broncos can find creative ways to get four guys out in passing patterns.
Derek 38:13
Fair enough. That was just kind of the the question I had. Just because I wanted to you know, make sure we didn’t forget about That’s right. We didn’t want to forget about so just wanted to to get you
Alex 38:27
know how to say our oku wake Lu not dammit. I was so cool. I was so confident.
Derek 38:35
You know you can be confident all you want. I just got this for you.
Alex 38:38
Oh, cool. a boon. Oh,
Derek 38:40
yeah. See, I’m getting right every time. I’m not having any problems pronounced. See, I mean, I’ve got it. Dude. I don’t know what the problem is here. But let’s go ahead and spend a little bit of time there. Any thoughts on Albert O.?, outside of what we’ve just kind of talked about other than a blocking type of tight end. Do you see any upside for him? Even as a DFS type of play?
Kevin 39:04
No. 25 targets. I mean, seriously, it is? Yeah. Noah Fant‘s job to lose over Oh, yeah. There’s a little bit of a connection there with Drew Lock because of their college ties. But he is a big body guy who? Yeah, they’re gonna have a couple packages for him throughout the season of just opportunities to get him the ball, but consistently, it’s nowhere near anything I want to do.
Derek 39:36
Enough. That takes us over to the quarterback room, and they’ve got a guy named Drew Lock over there who finished qb 23 last year 254 completions 443 attempts for 2933 yards 16 passing touchdowns and 15 interceptions, an additional 44 rushing attempts for 160 on On the ground, and three rushing touchdowns. What are your thoughts on a guy named Drew Lock?
Drew Lock: Denver Broncos QB
Kevin 40:07
He needs to improve. This is this is it like it quite frankly, at the Denver fan, I don’t really want to see him as our quarterback. I just need to find a path to a better option, drafting it nine, you’re not going to get a better option. Maybe, right? I mean, at least
Alex 40:24
not for next year.
Kevin 40:26
Well, Jones is out there. That might be a better option at this point, right? Like, you just I’m just saying like, Trey, Lance and Justin Fields and Lawrence and Wilson, excuse me, it’s the kid out of BYU. Like, all those guys are probably gonna be gone by nine. So do you go for Matt Jones? Or are you punting and going in a different direction and you know, there’d be nothing more than I would love is to find a way for the Broncos to get Deshaun Watson. I think that’s a pipe dream. I don’t think the Broncos are going to get deshaun Watson as much as I would love it. But you know who they could go out and get that I think it’d be pretty fun is Fitz magic? I think I think Ryan Fitzpatrick would be pretty cool to have. he’d bring some fun, some flair to the Broncos. He’d understand how to use these weapons and Jerry, Juedy and Courtland Sutton and no offense. Honestly, I think Alex Smith wouldn’t be a bad option for the Denver Broncos guys. The Broncos how do we end drives, we don’t convert third downs and we turn the ball over. What does alex smith do? Well, he converts on third down and he doesn’t turn the ball over like he is the he is the absolute remedy to what our problems have been in that regard. I’m not saying he’s a long term option, guys. Like I just I understand that. But they were looking to put a bandaid on this. Fitzpatrick or Alex Smith, either one and put a veteran presence in with these young skilled position players that the Broncos have. I think you can see at least enough of a turnaround to make them competitive, right? Get them back to you know 509 and seven, fight for set fight for 10 and six, this five and 11 horse crap that John Elway has been putting out on the field is ridiculous. And I don’t care if it’s been COVID or this excuse or that excuse or whatever. But outside of him falling for getting Peyton Manning to fall into Denver and reaping the rewards of everything that Payton accomplished while he was here in the city. Elway’s 10 years the GM has been a bus like him firing himself was the best thing to happen in Denver sports last year. Period. So, Drew Lock is is he’s young, he wants to be a gunslinger. But he says he seems to struggle to to get that second and third read. And that causes bad decisions. It causes turnovers, it causes him to take untimely sacks, or just completely throw the ball away because he’s not seeing his guy opened down the sidelines. So a lot of improvements need to be made. Hopefully they have a full true offseason to do it. for his sake, but quite frankly, as a Broncos fan. I’m done cast my vote on this one, and I’m voting him off the island. Like that’s just my vote as a Broncos fan.
Alex 43:37
Kevin’s tribe has spoken. I’m with you, Kevin, I would love to see another option back there. And the thing that you said that I really really agree with is a veteran presence. Be at a Fitzpatrick be at an Alex Smith. Or if the Broncos are going to go the route of draft a quarterback in the first round or try and find their their long term solution this year. I still think you bring in a guy like that, that can be a stop gap or allow that guy to develop so that we’re not throwing we’re not just you know, Groundhog’s Day and throwing in a quarterback that isn’t ready to play in the NFL into the NFL. So that’s that’s what I think would be the best course of action for the Broncos to do is to grab of that trend. Have him be a stopgap for a year and then you know, have your rookie come along in whatever, you know, a year or two I guess I should say with the with the veteran quarterback and then have your rookie come along and be ready to play. Fitzpatrick is obviously comfortable in that role, because he’s done it. Did it last year most recently in Miami. So I would be on board with that. But I’ll tell you what if drew Lock trots out There’s a starting quarterback week one get ready for another breakup diatribe.
Derek 45:06
You know Alex, I very much appreciate those diatribes every single year from you. So yeah, nothing else I’d be entertained. You know, once the Broncos season’s done and I get to, you know, enjoy your breakup letter along with everybody else on the YouTube channel. But the best thing that I can say about Drew Lock is that he finished really close to where I had projected finish. Going into the season, right, he finished it quarterback 23 I had him ranked it at quarterback 24 before we even started this thing off, I got there a little bit different way than what the projections were. But it’s one of those that it’s become very apparent that he is not the guy for Denver to be that long term success. And given Elway’s and that teams organizations to draft a quarterback in the first round. I really hope that this year, they don’t go that route with that ninth pick. I really hope they they try and work something out. And we see something different here because their track record of both drafting and developing a quarterback that they’ve done in the first round. hasn’t worked out. What was the last time that that worked out? 1984 draft I believe
Alex 46:21
was the 83 draft, but it wasn’t the Broncos that even drafted him.
Derek 46:25
Right. They had to trade for that guy too.
Alex 46:27
They traded for John Elway too.
Derek 46:29
Right. Like that’s that’s how long the Broncos have not gotten the quarterback situation right. In the draft.
Alex 46:37
Yeah, I mean, Cutler was okay. But still got ran out of town. greasy was never going to be you know, never live up to the expectations. That was John Elway. He was just he was he was okay. But he wasn’t he wasn’t John Elway. Right. Oh, yeah. He always had the deck stacked against them. But you’re right. Even even the Brock Osweiler experience was was terrible. It was bad enough that you had to go out and get Peyton Manning. Right yet. If you were fortunate enough to go out and get Peyton Manning
Derek 47:14
right, that’s probably more accurate. You know, the Tim Tebow experience the you name it them drafting a quarterback in the first or second round, like they just haven’t hit on a quarterback. So for them, I’m I’m subscribing fully to the method you guys are talking about go out, trade for a guy, find a guy in free agency to bring in and be the guy. Because the Broncos just haven’t been able to do it through the draft process. And I don’t see that changing again this year. Because even if they, you know, even if there’s a guy that you would want at quarterback sitting there, it’s probably a guy like Trey Lance sitting there at number nine. Like that’s probably the most realistic option that they’ve got. If it’s not, if he hasn’t already got and then if not, it starts falling into guys like Kyle Trask or Mack Jones. And again, that’s, that’s not an option for the for the Broncos to do. Because there’s too much developing, I think to go along with that. And they’ve got too many pieces that they they need to bring along up to speed at the same time.
Alex 48:18
I tell you, what, if if tre Lance is still on the board when the Broncos are picking and they don’t take him that that breakup letter is coming a lot sooner than you think it will.
Derek 48:28
So
Kevin 48:29
I’m telling you right now, whoever takes Kyle Trask is that kid will bomb in the NFL. I’m not impressed with Kyle Trask at all, like after doing all that and the name just sends a shiver down my spine like he just will not be able to handle NFL talent and how the NFL speed of the game and the he will absolutely fall apart at this level.
Derek 48:55
I would tend to agree with you. He had some very, very good receivers and an extremely good tight end down there. Kind of helping him bailing them out there. But just wanted to make sure that that had nothing to do with a Georgia bias. Because it is a Florida quarterback that we’re talking about.
Kevin 49:12
No, no, I love Peyton Manning. He’s a Tennessee quarterback.
Derek 49:16
That’s fair. That’s fair. So But yeah, I just the Broncos have a ton to work on this year. And hopefully they’ll get some things right. But yeah, they’ve got they’ve got the fifth most salary cap available to them this year going into free agency. They’ve got some decent decent draft picks. But they’ve also got a ton of question marks to address on both sides of the ball. That offensive line needs some help. The defense has holes throughout it. So it’ll be very interesting to see how all this plays out and they still got the question at quarterback there as well. So I’m hoping that they’re turning it around, but I don’t necessarily see a ton of Difference happening for the Broncos this year which could limit some of these fantasy players which is just unfortunate because they have some very good players for fantasy on this roster. Alrighty guys well I do believe that that’s going to wrap up yet another episode of the good old boys fantasy football podcast make sure you hop on to the socials, instagram, twitter, facebook at @GoodOldBoysFF. Give us a follow there. Check it out. We got some good content coming your way. But hop over to the website goodoldboysff.com. subscribe to the newsletter. For Kevin and Alex. I’m Derek. Have a good one. Be safe.