As all football fans know by now, the Denver Broncos are desperately looking for a quarterback. Following the expected retirement of Peyton Manning and the unexpected departure of Brock Osweiler in free agency, general manager John Elway is left with just two signal-callers on the roster right now. The team sent a conditional late-round draft pick to the Philadelphia Eagles for Mark Sanchez, and they still have 2015 seventh-rounder Trevor Siemian. Not exactly a deep pocket of starting talent there.
Elway has exhausted all of his options looking for additional QB help this offseason. Ryan Fitzpatrick was deemed too expensive in free agency, so the team is now taking meetings with the recently released Brian Hoyer. The idea of trading for Cleveland passer Josh McCown has been floated, but he'll turn 37 before next season. San Francisco 49ers QB Colin Kaepernick has long been Elway's top target, but the 28-year-old passer is unwilling to restructure his $11-plus million guaranteed salary for 2016 to help facilitate a deal.
The final vehicle for Elway to acquire a QB is the upcoming NFL Draft, where Michigan State quarterback Connor Cook could be a possibility in the second-round, according to Pro Football Focus.
Assuming Memphis' Paxton Lynch - the No. 3 QB in this year's draft class - is scooped up before the Broncos are on the clock at No. 63 overall, Cook could emerge as a decent fall back option. He has the physical tools to succeed at the next level, though he did struggle with consistency in college. Still, Cook has won some big games for Michigan State and has enjoyed long stretches of impressive play. Though he projects more as a game manager in the NFL, the Broncos are desperate for some young, high-upside talent under center.
In 2015, Cook completed 56.1 percent of his passes while throwing for 3,131 yards with 24 touchdowns against seven interceptions. Never a stat-stuffer, Cook has gotten by more on his football IQ and quality decision making than his raw talent. He threw just 22 interceptions in 43 career games in college.
He makes sense as a backup with room to grow for the Broncos.
