The 2024 NFL Draft is upon us and for fans of the Denver Broncos, the wait to get a new quarterback on the roster could be over. At least, that is the expectation of most.
This offseason, who the Broncos will select to be the next franchise passer has been just about all that anyone in Broncos Country has talked about. Since moving on from Russell Wilson, a move that we saw coming a mile away, just about every prospect in this class has been talked about in connection with the Broncos.
First, it was Michael Penix Jr. but his performance against Michigan in the College Football National Championship Game cooled a lot of those talks. Next, it was Bo Nix, the "perfect fit" for Sean Payton's system. It seemed sure that the Broncos would select him, at least if you listened to a large portion of the fanbase, and that is when things started to heat up around J.J. McCarthy.
There is also the talk of trading up, perhaps even including Pat Surtain II in a deal to do so in order to land Drake Maye or Jayden Daniels.
There is also the talk of taking a guy like Tulane's Michael Pratt later in the draft to sit as an understudy and learn the system. But the guy who seems to be talked about the least is South Carolina's Spencer Rattler.
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There was a time when Rattler was one of the top prospects in the entire country, and that was before he even entered college. He was on the popular Netflix series QB1 and that is when many fans of the game soured on him for attitude reasons. He went to Oklahoma, struggled, and was benched by Lincoln Riley in favor of Caleb Williams, the guy who is going to go No.1 overall on Thursday night.
But the work that Rattler did at South Carolina and the subsequent lead-up to the draft has largely gone overlooked. He repaired his image at the school and threw for over 6,200 yards and 37 touchdowns in 25 games.
Spencer Rattler would be perfect fall-back option for Broncos
Rattler is far more mature than he was in his TV star days and his tape is better than most give him credit for. He is patient in the pocket, willing to let plays develop. He throws with accuracy and he makes some incredible plays with his arm, the kinds of things that can't be taught.
Spencer Rattler to the Broncos or Seahawks. I’m convinced.
— Kay Adams (@heykayadams) April 5, 2024
(Also this is a tik tok trend - calm down and go with it) pic.twitter.com/bggxnEJcgI
The right play in this draft for the Broncos is to trade down in the first round. After adding a second-round pick in that process, the team will have options at quarterback. The recent trade for Zach Wilson actually enhances those options.
And if the team is faced with a decision to draft Penix, Nix or Rattler, it should be Rattler who gets that nod. He has the highest ceiling of the players on that list and Payton is the coach that can get the most out of him.
It may sound crazy as you read this, but if the Denver Broncos land a quarterback in this draft, Spencer Rattler is the right choice.
