John Elway's in wait-and-see mode with Drew Lock's contract dispute

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — The Broncos are back. Well, all but one.

On Wednesday, rookie quarterback Drew Lock was a no show as the team officially reported for training camp.

John Elway was noncommittal if the team’s quarterback of the future, as Elway has deemed him, would be with the team at the start of training camp on Thursday morning.

“We’ll see,” Elway said unamused. “I’m not going to make a prediction one way or the other. We’re hoping that he’ll be here.”

Lock, pick No. 42 of the 2019 draft, is the only Broncos rookie that remains unsigned. According to multiple reports, the holdup is that the second-round pick is seeking a “quarterback premium” to go along with his slotted rookie contract.

Despite Dalton Risner, pick No. 41, signing his contract on Wednesday—four years, $7.142 million—Lock still remains unsigned less than 24 hours before camp opens.

According to Mike Klis, the Broncos have offered Lock a “quarterback premium,” but have made it known they will not pay him more than Risner.

A holdup for Risner not signing his deal until 48 hours before camp opened was his representation wanted to make sure he would get a larger contract than Lock, since Risner was drafted one pick before the quarterback.

The Broncos did give Risner additional money, some may call it a “premium,” in the way of a $75,000 workout bonus in 2021 and a $100,000 workout bonus in 2022. Lock’s “quarterback premium” that is on the table could be along those lines as well.

“Nothing surprises me anymore,” Elway said when asked if he’s surprised Lock’s contract dispute made it this far. “So we’ll see what happens.”

With time ticking before camp opens, Lock remains unsigned and not in the building.

In Elway’s eyes, it’s now a waiting game.