From the silly story about Joe Flacco not treating him right — which Drew Lock was smart enough to skewer immediately — to questions about when he might start, the rookie quarterback looks to fit right in for the Denver Broncos. Although not yet ready to start in the NFL, Lock has captured much of the fans’ imagination.

So, intriguing as he is, why did Lock fall to round two? I've spent the last three weeks watching both Lock's highlights and his game film, along with reading bio and interview articles on him. A few things came up that deserve mention.

First and foremost, we should note that Lock has an impressive body of work. A four-year starter, Lock set an SEC record for touchdowns in a single season, with 44 his junior year. He also set school records while at Missouri.

Accuracy issues

Lock has often had issues with his accuracy, though. The question of accuracy has been brought up by every coach or pundit who looked at him, and for good reason. He began as a college career as a freshman quarterback with an abysmal of 49% completion rate on 263 passes.

What stands out to me, though, is that he improved yearly, throwing in an ‘Air Raid’ style offense in his sophomore (54.6%) and junior (57.8%) years before winding up at 62.9% in the pro-style offense scripted by his new offensive coordinator, Derek Dooley, during his senior year. Lock had fewer touchdown passes that year (28) than his junior season, but he went his last six games without an interception, despite throwing a career-high 437 times that year.

No pro team has successfully run an Air Raid type system for long — it just doesn't fit. Being more of a pro-style player helped Drew immediately. Score one for him.

Lock had made a pro-level decision to return to school after his junior year. He was physically ready for the pros, he felt, but he recognized that he wasn’t mentally prepared for the jump.

The addition of Dooley and the pro-style offense made that a very wise decision in retrospect. That kind of maturity shows that Lock has the mental chops and the rational humility to learn and grow as a player in the NFL. Score two for Lock.

Technical concerns

As you’d expect, there’s more than one reason for Drew’s fall. Accuracy, footwork, consistency, play-calling and form all played major roles in that situation. Most NFL front-offices saw him as needing too much training to count on soon.

Learning NFL-level footwork and making NFL reads are likely to be the keys to whether or not a QB succeeds as a pro. Watching film of Lock’s pro day, I noticed that he was setting his feet well, throwing off a wider base and using his full arm strength.

Unsurprisingly, his accuracy looked great that day. Without someone attacking you and with unencumbered receivers, it’s easy to nail throws if you have the kind of 155mm howitzer on your shoulder that Drew boasts. No one questions his arm strength.

During his college career, Lock had a tendency to take tiny, pitter-patter steps when moving in or outside of the pocket. He threw off his back foot quite a bit, usually unnecessarily. He also had a tendency to throw flat-footed, counting on his arm strength, to throw off-balance and to roll left even though he is at his best rolling right. These are all bad habits.

A lot of otherwise talented QBs falter in the NFL because they can’t master the footwork that leads to accuracy. I’d count on Lock, however, as a well-known hard worker, to take the hard coaching that will mold him into a quality thrower. When he sets his feet and steps into the pass, he’s extremely accurate. This is a talented kid.

Reading/reacting from under center

Another potential issues are his lack of work making pro-level reads and taking snaps under center. That began to improve under Dooley. While it wasn't used much in games, Dooley had Lock and his QB coach working on the under-center footwork that he will need in the pros.

I've been asked why the NFL requires so much under-center work, and the answer is surprisingly easy. Remember the Sheriff — Peyton Manning — and his legendary skill out of play-action? You can’t get that without pro-level, under-center work. It’s that simple.

On the good side, I found Lock to possess unusual ball-handling skills. His ball fakes and tucks were a pleasure to watch. Score another one for the QB. Although a lot of it was on zone reads that aren't as common in the NFL, the underlying skill should easily adapt to Denver’s hybrid form of the West Coast offense.

Werewolf mode

Drew also has 2-4 plays a game where he goes into werewolf mode — the moon seems to come out and he becomes a beast. That’s not the compliment it is often taken as — beasts don’t have opposable thumbs, and Lock suddenly throws as if he’s lost his. It’s not hard to figure out why.

In an interview, Lock was queried about his tendency toward poor form and mechanics when throwing. His reply was,

“That’s just our style of game," Lock told the Sporting News ahead of the 2019 NFL Draft. "That’s what we do. That’s what we’re proud of.

"It’s probably going to be hard to change,” he went on. “…unless someone really needs me to change it. Then I will. But that’s just who I am.”

Pride in the wrong thing

It’s no news flash that every NFL coach expects you to change and improve upon such tendencies. It’s nothing to be proud of; it’s just poor way to play your position.

Immediately upon drafting Lock, the Broncos' coaches noted that they will be working hard on his accuracy. You don’t get that accuracy without footwork and mechanics.

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Drew Lock is a very hardworking guy. I don’t doubt that he can overcome these issues. But it was, potentially, another reason he may have dropped to the second round. It was an immature, silly statement. You don’t brag about your weaknesses — you improve on them.

Bottom line

I like Lock. I think he has a real shot at being a big-time NFL QB. Everyone makes errors, yet this was a big one. Like some of his off-balance, wrong-footed throws that went badly awry, this is just one that Lock probably wishes he had back.

He’s a Bronco now. He has the best of staffs around him. It’s up to him to take it all in and make it work.

After seeing all of his tape, I think he’s going to do fine.