In his latest four-round 2019 NFL mock draft with trades, Draft Wire’s Luke Easterling has the Denver Broncos trading up in the first round to select Missouri quarterback Drew Lock with the fifth overall pick.
In exchange for the fifth pick, Easterling has the Broncos sending their first-round pick (10th overall), second-round pick, third-round pick and a 2020 draft pick to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Here is Easterling’s commentary with the selection:
Sorry, but I’m not buying the addition of a 34-year-old Joe Flacco as evidence the Broncos won’t be targeting a quarterback of the future early in this draft. Lock has all the physical tools to be a franchise passer, and John Elway knows he needs a long-term solution at the game’s most important position.
This move would make sense if Lock turns out to be the franchise quarterback Denver has been looking for ever since Peyton Manning retired. If the move backfired, though, Lock would be the latest addition to a long line of Elway’s failed quarterback projects.
Without selections in the next two rounds, the Broncos next pick in Easterling’s mock was Clemson cornerback Kendall Joseph. Denver originally had a pair of 2019 fourth-round picks but one of them will be traded to the Baltimore Ravens in exchange for Flacco.
To read Easterling’s complete four-round NFL mock draft, click here.
