Getty Drew Lock claps during a Broncos game.
The Detroit Lions are sifting through options and attempting to reach a conclusion on a Matthew Stafford trade, and as they begin to do so, teams across the league are making their pitch.
Every city with a need at quarterback believes their team should be the one to land Stafford or have the most attractive deal from the Lions. Recently, Mike Klis of 9 News in Denver made that case for the Denver Broncos. Klis thinks that if Stafford is truly available, the Broncos are a team that makes the most sense for a trade. The reason? Drew Lock.
In a piece, Klis maintains that the Lions should look at the Broncos closest as a trade partner with a deal centered around Lock, who could give them the young quarterback with experience they may crave plus picks. As Klis maintains, none of the other teams the Lions could trade with may offer such a deal.
He wrote:
“But consider the viewpoint of the Lions, who have already announced they will trade Stafford, their starting QB of the past 12 seasons. If you’re only other QBs are career backup Chase Daniel and David Blough, do you want to work a trade with the Indianapolis Colts, who don’t have a QB to swap after Philip Rivers just retired and veteran backup Jacoby Brissett is about to hit free agency, or the Broncos, who probably have the best young QB in Lock among all the teams who may be in the Stafford market?
Most of the trade speculation involving Stafford has the Lions asking for a first-round draft pick. But they are not expected to get a first-round pick better than the No. 7 overall selection they already have. At No. 7, the Lions figure to get the third or fourth-best QB in the draft. Would Zach Wilson, Justin Fields or North Dakota State’s Trey Lance be ready to start Game 1 of the 2021 season? No way. Only Trevor Lawrence in this year’s draft class is worthy of an opening-day start.
Of all the teams the Lions can dance with, it’s easy to assume Denver would be among their most preferred partners.”
Whether this is true or not remains to be seen, and there has not been anything concrete with regards to where Stafford could end up at this point in time. Denver offering Lock in the deal would at least give Detroit a young quarterback to build around for the future where they might not feel the complete pressure to draft one of the options this year. Detroit could still pick a quarterback and let him and Lock duel it out if they so chose as well. but Lock would give them immediate NFL experience to rely on without having to add a potentially washed-up veteran.
Having a quarterback with starting experience who is also young as a crutch might be a good idea for the Lions to help with life post-Stafford. Interestingly, Lock was a player scouted by Detroit’s old front office, so there may be a small connection between him and some who remain with the organization already.
Drew Lock Stats
Lock was a second-round pick of Denver in 2019, and since coming into the league, has put up some decent stats. In a pair of injury-complicated seasons, Lock has put up 3,953 yards, 23 touchdowns and 18 interceptions. Folks in Denver believe he is their answer at quarterback given these numbers, but it’s possible the team might not be as patient with him given their older coaching staff. While playing in college with Missouri, Lock put up solid stats with 1,553 yards passing and 99 touchdowns in his career. For these purposes, the Lions would probably like Lock’s starting NFL experience and age the most.
Analyzing Lions Trade Demands for Matthew Stafford
So what is the cost for Stafford going to be, and would the Lions like to get a chance at a young quarterback in a deal? That’s possible, but the lack of attractive options on the market could hurt this possibility. Sam Darnold or perhaps Jimmy Garoppolo or Deshaun Watson are the only players who could be on the move who fit such a description. If Lock was in the mix, he would as well. The team knows they have to trade Stafford and it’s no question the move will likely happen. Even such, that shouldn’t dampen the market or lower the asking price. At 32, Stafford is right in the middle of his NFL prime and should fetch a huge return for the Lions, who could use the assortment of picks to help bolster their roster in other spots and build a more complete team. The Lions could use some extra picks not just this year but in 2022 as well.
With the number of teams expected to have interest, the Lions can afford to be choosy and drive a hard bargain on Stafford with any team who calls on him across the league. A first-round pick and other picks from 2021 should be the lowest the team considers going at this point, and if a young quarterback is indeed in play, the Lions need to think about that move as well.
Someone with the experience and potential like Lock could make a lot of sense for Detroit.
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