Could Denver Broncos draft quarterback Garrett Grayson?

The Denver Broncos need a quarterback, no matter how you slice it. Peyton Manning is 39 years old; his days of slicing and dicing defenses is coming to a close.

Sure, the Broncos have John Elway-drafted Brock Osweiler on the roster. But, is he the answer at QB? And even if Elway and his executives believe “Os” is awesome, shouldn’t they provide him with competition?

Enter Garrett Grayson.

Grayson, a Colorado State University standout, is being touted as the third-best quarterback in this year’s upcoming NFL Draft. At least, that what quarterback guru, Super Bowl winning head coach Jon Gruden said of him recently.

Watching Grayson perform for Gruden in drills, two things stood out; he takes coaching well and he’s an accurate passer. Those two qualities, both intangible and tangible, will be needed for Grayson to succeed at the next level.

What’s more, Elway himself said Grayson is “probably more ready” for the NFL right now than the highly touted Marcus Mariota or Jameis Winston. That’s high praise.

“I think he’s probably more ready,” Elway said of Grayson during the pre-Draft press conference at Dove Valley Thursday. “I think there is an adjustment to go in, but any time you spend time underneath the center as well as back in shotgun [you have an advantage]. When I look at that transition, the biggest thing is probably being able to see because one thing shotgun does do is allow you to see better. If you haven’t been under center, there is an adjustment to being able to come out and you’re more limited to what you can see because the big guys are right in front of you. I think that is the biggest adjustment that they have to make.”

And when Elway was asked if he would consider drafting a QB, the Duke answered, “We are wide open to everything.”

Consider these reasons the Broncos might want to draft the former Ram: Grayson is originally from Washington, so is Elway. More chiefly, Grayson played at Colorado State, just up the road from the Mile High City, and that’s important to another influential Broncos man, Gary Kubiak. Kubiak has long liked CSU players, likely due to the fact his two sons, Klint and Klay, each were Rams. Klint was a DB from 2005-2009 and now works for the Minnesota Vikings as their Offensive Quality Control Coach. Klay was a quarterback, just like his old man, and called Fort Collins home from 2007-2010.

If Grayson is still available in the third round, look for the Broncos to at least consider taking the Colorado State kid with the pick.