Ohio State football: 3 teams that should trade up for Justin Fields
By Ryan Stano
Denver has had a problem finding quarterbacks ever since John Elway took over personnel decisions. After signing Peyton Manning in free agency, he hasn’t been able to find a quarterback to succeed the future Hall of Famer since his retirement.
Enter Justin Fields. The Broncos sit at nine in the Draft and wouldn’t need to give up quite as much to trade up to fourth as other teams. Drew Lock, who they drafted in the second round a few years ago out of Missouri, isn’t getting the job done. They need someone else who they can trust.
Fields has more talent than Lock and has a higher ceiling. Denver already has a wealth of weapons around the quarterback with Jerry Jeudy, DeSean Hamilton, Courtland Sutton, KJ Hamler, and Noah Fant. Fields would be able to step right in and deliver.
The Broncos are not that far away from contending for the playoffs. Their defense will be better with Von Miller coming back, they have a good running game, and they have good pass catchers. They just need a better offensive line and, most importantly, a good quarterback.
Fields wouldn’t have to play right away in Denver either. If Elway really wanted to give Lock one more shot, Fields could sit behind him and learn for a year. That would allow him to learn the offense more and get comfortable with the NFL game.
The final team who should trade up for Fields is a team that just signed another former Ohio State football player to be their backup at quarterback.