Former Denver Broncos top pick Paxton Lynch shines in USFL
Former Denver Broncos first-round pick Paxton Lynch had a great day for the Michigan Panthers in the USFL, showing off his talent.
It feels like it’s been a lifetime since the Denver Broncos moved up a handful of picks in the 2016 NFL Draft to select Memphis quarterback Paxton Lynch.
Lynch obviously did not work out as an NFL quarterback, but at the age of 28, Lynch hasn’t given up on his professional football career.
As a matter of fact, for the last couple of months, Lynch has been playing for the Michigan Panthers of the USFL, the United States Football League.
The rebooted USFL involves plenty of former NFL coaches and players, but Lynch is obviously one of the more high-profile guys as a former first-round draft pick.
Lynch didn’t control where he was drafted in the NFL, but his downfall in Denver included plenty of conflicting rumors about a poor work ethic off the field.
Whether or not that was actually the case doesn’t really matter at this point — Lynch simply didn’t show signs of growth in his time with the Denver Broncos, which also included plenty of injuries that limited his ability to show progress as well.
Ironically, Lynch was nearly the backup to Russell Wilson in Seattle just a couple of years ago and had arguably one of his best performances as a pro player in a preseason game against the Denver Broncos.
Now, as a member of the Michigan Panthers, Lynch is hoping to obviously rehab his value and get on the radar of NFL teams once again.
His performance in the season finale might just do that.
Former Denver Broncos first-rounder Paxton Lynch shines for Michigan Panthers
💪 @PaxtonLynch balled out in his final game of the season
— Michigan Panthers (@USFLPanthers) June 19, 2022
Relive some of the best moments from his impressive day ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/nIvLmwSrE3
There aren’t a lot of throws in this highlight reel that have your jaw dropping to the floor. What we have here are some pretty good decisions with the football from Lynch, some quick reactions to blitzing defenders, and some accurate throws under pressure from a variety of platforms.
To put it plainly, we have Paxton Lynch playing the position like a natural.
Frankly, all of the blame for Lynch flaming out in Denver cannot be put on his shoulders.
Injuries are unpredictable.
The Broncos’ coaching staff(s) was/were not good.
The supporting cast was a work in progress.
Perhaps the biggest issue you had with this squad here was that Lynch and the offense did not seemingly have the respect of the remnants of the Super Bowl 50 defense. They supported each other as teammates but there was a clear “us and them” type of mentality going on when the team started losing more than it was winning.
That unit carried the team for two full seasons, nearly bringing the 2016 roster all the way to the playoffs.
There’s no denying how much weight the Super Bowl 50 defense carried, but Lynch’s time in Denver — which seemed like a perfect situation for a young and talented QB on paper back in 2016 — was disastrous.
Hopefully, he can find his way back onto an NFL roster and get a shot in training camp and preseason play.