ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — Quarterbacks flew off the board to start the 2021 NFL Draft. Trevor Lawrence, Zach Wilson and Trey Lance kicked off the draft going one, two and three overall.
Then it was quiet along the quarterback front. Picks six, seven and eight came and went and the quarterback market remained dead silent.
To the surprise of the Denver Broncos, Justin Fields was sitting there when they were on the clock at No. 9.
But the star quarterback wasn’t on Denver’s draft card.
Instead, it was cornerback Patrick Surtain II out of Alabama.
“Was I surprised [Fields] dropped? Maybe a little bit, but we set our board and Surtain was really high on our board,” George Paton said on Thursday night, describing why the Broncos passed on a top quarterback in favor of a cornerback.
“What I like about him is he’s shown that he’s very capable of both man and zone,” Vic Fangio said on Thursday night about his new first-round corner. “I think he has good eyes, meaning that he sees more than just the guy he’s lined up on. Good tackler in the running game. Good ball skills. And I think he has the versatility — we really haven’t seen it on tape — but everything we know about him and what he’s shown, there’s a chance, a good chance, that he can play inside too if we need him to, meaning as the fifth or sixth D.B.”
Paton wasn’t just surprised Fields was available when the Broncos were on the clock, he didn’t think Surtain would be there at No. 9 either.
“We thought Patrick would probably be gone when we were picking,” Denver’s general manager said, after stating the first eight picks “pretty much” went the way he was expecting. “We had a lot of teams — three or four teams — calling us for us to trade back. We were in those discussions as we were on the clock. But again, it would have taken a haul to pass Patrick Surtain.”
Not even a top-five quarterback was enough for the Broncos to pass on the All-American cornerback.
“We thought he was the best defensive player on the board,” Paton stated after the conclusion of the first round on Thursday night. “I can’t remember exactly where he was. We were surprised he was there and we were happy that we have him.”
When asked if he was a top-five player on their board, Paton said Surtain was “right there.”
Despite already having three starting cornerbacks on the roster entering the draft, Denver quadrupled down on the position with their first-round pick.
“You’re playing a lot of five defensive backs a good bit of the time — five or more 75 to 85 percent of the time,” Fangio explained. “So we’ll have plenty of opportunity to get him in there.”
Paton chose to grab the team’s best defensive player in the draft over what would have been the fourth quarterback drafted. And it’s not because quarterback wasn’t an option for the Broncos.
Despite acquiring Teddy Bridgewater for a sixth-round pick from the Carolina Panthers on Wednesday, quarterback was still in play for the Broncos in the first round on Thursday.
“Quarterback was in play. Definitely,” Paton stated. “The board just kind of fell where Surtain was there and we couldn’t pass him up. He was just too talented. Too unique. Too good off the field. Too good on the field. I’m familiar with his dad, his family. It was a home run for the Broncos to get Patrick Surtain.”
Along with that, Paton said the Broncos are “happy with the two quarterbacks we have here,” referring to Drew Lock and the newly acquired Bridgewater.
“Drew is working hard every day and Teddy is going to bring experience to the room and some leadership. We are really excited for both quarterbacks,” Paton elaborated. “We’re always looking to improve positions, and quarterback is another one. But we like who we have.”
Unless Paton and the Broncos pull off a blockbuster trade for Aaron Rodgers before training camp, the decision to draft an excellent cornerback over a top quarterback will be the storyline of Denver’s 2021 draft.
