"Drew obviously has made great progress": Pat Shurmur points out three key areas Drew Lock has improved

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — Drew Lock’s offseason was reminiscent of Groundhog Day.

Wake up, early morning Zoom meeting, lift, study film, throw and end the day with more film. That was Lock’s daily routine in the offseason. Over and over and over again.

“I put every single ounce [I had] in this offseason,” the 24-year old said during OTAs.

Lock’s hard work has paid off, according to his offensive coordinator.

“Drew obviously has made great progress from a year ago,” Pat Shurmur said on Wednesday after the Broncos’ second practice of mandatory minicamp. “Last year, he kind of went into the season raw without really having an offseason and he worked his way through it and he did a lot of good things last year and I think he kind of built on the good things he did a year ago.”

During his second season in the NFL, Lock had moments where he flashed his potential and showed why he was a second-round pick. However, Lock struggled consistently putting those traits and skills on tape. That caused new general manager George Paton to bring in Teddy Bridgewater to compete with Lock for the starting job in 2021.

“I think they’re both getting better,” Shurmur said on Wednesday, pointing to Lock and Bridgwater’s play during OTAs and minicamp. “I think obviously they both got work with the ones. They both had a chance to really share the workload with regards to the reps.”

But there are three specific, and key, areas that Shurmur has noticed an improvement in Lock from last year.

“I’ve seen improvement in Drew from decision making, his timing, his accuracy,” he said, pointing to three crucial components of being a successful NFL quarterback.

In his first season as the full-time starter, despite missing nearly four full games due to injury and COVID-19 protocols, Lock led the NFL with 15 interceptions. At times, his decision making was head scratching. Instead of hitting the open target, Lock forced the ball into double coverage down the field.

But, according to Shurmur, that has improved. In fact, during OTA and minicamp practices that have been open to the media, Lock has done a much better job not forcing the ball downfield and instead opting for the checkdown.

For Lock to have a shot at the starting job, he must have better decision making. So far, it’s been encouraging.

Another aspect that Lock has improved in, according to Shurmur, is his accuracy. In his second season in the league, Lock’s 57.3 completion percentage was the worst in the NFL. Much like decision making, for Lock to become the starting quarterback for a second year in a row, his accuracy and completion percentage have to significantly improve.

During offseason practices, Lock has displayed more precise footwork which has helped lead to more on-target throws.

“They both, when they are on top of their game, can execute at a high level, lead our offense, get completions, get the ball in the end zone,” Shurmur said about Denver’s two quarterbacks battling for the starting job. “They’ve just got to continue to do that within their own skillset to the best of their ability.”

According to Vic Fangio, OTAs and minicamp only account for about three percent of the quarterback competition. The other 97 percent of the evaluation and competition will take place in training camp and preseason.

That’s a reason why Drew’s work won’t stop when OTAs and mandatory minicamp wrap up on Thursday.

“I’ll throw quite a bit,” he said, detailing his plans over Denver’s six-week summer break. “I’ll maybe take a little bit of time, relax a couple days and then get right back to it. But my plan is to stay the same kind—the same kind of momentum and routine and schedule that I had during this offseason.

“I’ve just decided that I’m going to put my head down and keep grinding until this season is completely over,” Lock continued. “This is my job, this is my life and I want it to be for a very long time, and I want this city and this team to be successful, and that won’t come without work.”

So far, Lock’s offseason grind has proven to be beneficial since his offensive coordinator has already noticed an improvement in three key areas of his game.