As chance would have it, six degrees of Broncos separation entangle their legendary former quarterback and hopeful franchise savior.

In a sit-down with Broncos TV shortly after he was drafted, rookie QB Drew Lock was asked for his favorite story involving Peyton Manning, considering last year he attended the renowned Manning Passing Academy, a three-day football clinic held annually in Louisiana.

"There is plenty," Lock answered, before teasing, "I'll give you a funny story ..."

"It was all of the quarterbacks that were there at the Passing Academy, and he was talking about how he had a rough first year when he was there," he recalled. "He goes, 'You know, I set the all-time interception record [for a rookie QB] and I'm waiting for one of you to [expletive] break that for me! If anyone wants to do it, please go right ahead and get that done for me!'"

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Manning tossed 251 interceptions (compared to an all-time-record 539 touchdowns) across 18 NFL seasons and two teams. He threw 28 picks during his 1998 rookie campaign and 17 amid his championship-capturing swan song with the Broncos in 2015.

Lock, a natural gunslinger, was not overly turnover-prone at Missouri, committing 39 INTs in 50 collegiate games. He did, however, struggle with accuracy, a flaw that general manager John Elway underscored in his post-draft address.

“Drew obviously has a lot of talent, he’s got a lot of arm talent, but he’s got to work on a lot of different things too," Elway said. "I think when you look at what he did in college offensively, he’s in the spread offense and wasn’t under the center very often. With what we’re going to do offensively, he’s going to have a lot of work to do. I think technique is always a big thing. We talk about accuracy and accuracy a lot of times comes down to technique and throwing on rhythm. We believe he has a ton of talent, but we also believe he has a lot left to work on. It’s nice to be able to have a coach that’s worked with a stable of abilities that he does have. I think [Broncos Offensive Coordinator] Rich [Scangarello] and everybody is excited to work with him.”

Fortunately for his professional stock, Lock departed the Bayou State with more than just a humorous anecdote about the future Hall of Famer.

"One of the main things I learned from was how to be ready for the ups and downs as you get into the league, and how to handle that," he said.