Denver Broncos QB competition: Paxton Lynch vs. Trevor Siemian

Paxton Lynch

In 2016, I will admit I was a bit underwhelmed by Paxton Lynch, but I want to be fair. Lynch was a rookie playing in an offense that was asking him to do literally the opposite of what he’s great at. He’s now entering his second year in the NFL and is going to be operating in an offense that suits his skills perfectly.

As a quarterback, I’d theorize that the more you have to think in the moment, the less effective you are going to be as a playmaker. That’s not an excuse for Lynch or any other player, it’s just a reality. When you think too much, you don’t ‘do’ as well.

Lynch is going into year two with the expectation from many that he will be the starting quarterback. It might not seem fair to someone like Trevor Siemian, but draft status plays into this decision. The Broncos used a first round pick and traded an additional third round pick to move up and get him in the 2016 NFL Draft.

With that kind of investment made, they simply can’t let him sit on the bench when his opponent in the quarterback battle is a guy that struggled badly a year ago.

Lynch has the physical makeup and arm talent to be a star quarterback in the NFL. It will take on-field reps and trial by fire to see whether or not those traits translate to actual success.

His physical abilities have stood out in OTAs from what we’ve heard from Vance Joseph and the other coaches, and this new coaching staff will be tasked with bringing him along quickly. Lynch has talked about having a solid grasp on the new offense and terminology, so that shouldn’t be an issue when camp opens in six weeks.

While the coaching changes benefit all the quarterbacks (in my opinion), I think the addition of Mike McCoy and Bill Musgrave help Lynch in a significant way. Those are two guys who have done a great job working with young quarterbacks in this league. Notably, Musgrave has worked wonders with Derek Carr in Oakland, extracting his natural talent and ensuring his skills were magnified within their offense.

Lynch’s ability to get the ball out quickly and push the ball downfield suit McCoy’s offense perfectly, but he needs to be more accurate with the football. When we saw him last year, his inability to get even a first down was staggering at times.

If there are no setbacks between now and training camp, Lynch should have at least a slight lead in this battle, at least from my vantage point.