Denver Broncos

Denver Broncos: 5 reasons to believe in Paxton Lynch

Published Jun. 30, 2017 6:28 p.m. ET

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If Paxton Lynch is to start for the injured Trevor Siemian, Broncos nation should not feel worried.

While there is no official word yet, there is a possibility that Denver Broncos quarterback Paxton Lynch will be making his first career NFL start just four games into his rookie season. Trevor Siemian, the Broncos starter, left Sunday’s game at the Tampa Bay Buccaneers with a shoulder injury. The early indication is that it is a sprained AC joint, but as a lot of injuries go, time will tell how it heals.

Lynch entered the game when Siemian was injured and finished with respectable numbers, completing 14 of 24 pass attempts for 170 yards and a lone touchdown. When Lynch entered the game, the Broncos had scored 14 points, seven of which came from the defense. He was able to put up 13 more points on offense, avoid any turnovers and secure the win.

There is not a quarterback controversy to speak of quite yet, the injury may be the crack Lynch needs to shove open the proverbial door and stake his claim to the starting quarterback role. The Broncos host the Atlanta Falcons next week and follow that with a Thursday Night Football matchup on the road in San Diego against divisional foes, the Chargers. While Atlanta is 3-1, the Broncos are at home and the added importance of having Siemian potentially over-rested rather than short of rest on a three-day layoff between games may be worth keeping him out for a week.

The Broncos also may want to see what they have in Lynch, and decide if they want to roll the dice and go with Lynch until he proves otherwise, or stick with the former seventh-round pick Siemian, who has played well in his past two games.

Here are five reasons why Broncos fans can believe in Paxton Lynch moving forward.

Jan 17, 2016; Denver, CO, USA; Denver Broncos head coach Gary Kubiak looks at his play card during the first quarter in a AFC Divisional round playoff game at Sports Authority Field at Mile High. Mandatory Credit: Isaiah J. Downing-USA TODAY Sports

5. Easy Decisions

One of the reasons why Paxton Lynch was not in the same class as Carson Wentz and Jared Goff in the draft was their decision-making ability. As a prospect, Lynch had always struggled to break away from his from his read. However, that is an issue Siemian had struggled with as well. The reason that flaw has not reared its head so far is because of the success of the Gary Kubiak offense.

Kubiak uses the running game and quick passes to open the offense for his quarterback. A lot of times, Siemian was just making one read and thanks to the fear of the run, it was open.

In the same offense Kubiak ran in Houston, his last coaching stint, he was noted for being able to force the football to star wide receiver Andre Johnson. He was able to scheme Johnson open, especially off of play action, and was able to make a quarterback with questionable talent, like Matt Schaub, look like a grade-A decision maker. The same can be found in this offense for Paxton Lynch. The big difference between Lynch and Siemian would be how much of the playbook Lynch can successfully run. When it comes to making the throws and similar decisions to what Siemian is doing, Lynch can do that.

Feb 27, 2016; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Memphis Tigers quarterback Paxton Lynch throws a pass during the 2016 NFL Scouting Combine at Lucas Oil Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports

4. Arm Strength

The biggest advantage Lynch has over Siemian is arm strength. Even on Siemian’s deepest touchdown pass, he under-threw Emmanuel Sanders and forced him to come back to catch the pass. Siemian does not have the strongest arm which caps his deep ball ability and when it comes to velocity, he does not have the strongest arm either.

Paxton Lynch led all quarterbacks at the combine in velocity. Siemian missed the combine due to injury, but it is a guarantee that he would not have beat Lynch, who had a higher velocity than Jameis Winston and Marcus Mariota, the top two quarterbacks in Siemen’s class.

This matters for two reasons. First, those quick decisions and being able to hit those first reads now gets easier. Trevor Siemian has seen his fair share of tipped passes and dropped interceptions in the first couple of weeks. Most of those potential interceptions came in situations created by a lack of velocity, situations where the pass would’ve been a completion if the ball had arrived just seconds earlier.

On the other hand, Lynch being able to throw the ball consistently down field opens up the offense in a big way. Lynch showed off his arm on a few occasions in Week 4 and connected with Demaryius Thomas on a 31-yard completion. Siemian has not tested his arm as much, and when he has, passes have typically come up short. Lynch will get more respect from defensive backs, and will be able to open up the entire offense with an element Siemian does not quite possess.

Memphis Tigers quarterback Paxton Lynch (12) runs with the ball during the third quarter against the Houston Cougars at TDECU Stadium. The Cougars won 35-34. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports

3. Mobility

One underrated factor about Lynch is that he is pretty mobile. He is not Michael Vick or anything, but it does have to garner the respect of the opponent and it adds another dimension to the offense Siemian does not possess.

The best factor about Lynch’s mobility is not even running for yardage, it’s his ability to break out of the pocket and continue to make plays down the field. Lynch can throw on the run and is just as good, if not better outside of the pocket as he is inside of it with his feet planted.

Some of the biggest plays Kubiak would create in his previous offenses were off play action bootlegs. Kubiak would lull teams to sleep with Arian Foster. Then, when they least expected it, a play action bootleg would leave Andre Johnson with no safety help. Schaub would put the ball in the area of Johnson and six points would typically ensue.

In Denver, Lynch has a stronger arm and an even better ability to get out of the pocket, set his feet and make hard throws down the field. The offense was almost made for a player such as Paxton Lynch to run, which kind of makes sense considering Kubiak drafted him the first round.

Oct 2, 2016; Tampa, FL, USA; Denver Broncos quarterback Paxton Lynch (12) throws the ball against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers during the first half at Raymond James Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

2. Paxton Lynch is the inevitable future

Not only did Kubiak and his front office spend a first round pick on Paxton Lynch, the team traded up using valuable assets to draft him. They like his mobility, and ability to run the bootleg plays. They recognize his arm strength and know that if they give him easy decisions, he can make them. To say that Trevor Siemian is the long term answer is only delaying the inevitable, that Lynch is going to get his chance to make starts for the Denver Broncos.

If there is one thing the Broncos were able to learn from their first three-plus weeks using Siemian, it is that he can be trusted. Siemian has the looks of one of the better backup quarterbacks in the NFL, which could turn into a long career for him.

The main reason Lynch was not the starter in Week 1 was typical rookie growing pains, he did not know nearly as much of the playbook as Siemian did. Now that the Broncos have played in four games, and Lynch was able to run some of the playbook first hand, you could expect Lynch is at the very least closer to knowing the entire playbook than he was when Siemian won the starting job.

Lynch has the greater upside, he can inspire the offense and at some point, this is going to happen. Why wait an entire season to delay the inevitable?

Jan 24, 2016; Denver, CO, USA; Denver Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning (18) reacts following the game against the New England Patriots in the AFC Championship football game at Sports Authority Field at Mile High. The Broncos defeated the Patriots 20-18 to advance to the Super Bowl. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

1. Any quarterback can be better than 2015 Peyton Manning

Entering the season, the Broncos’ big question seemed to be at quarterback. While some questioned if Siemian had what it took to replace a legend in Peyton Manning, others asked who exactly was Siemian replacing?

There is the legend Peyton Manning, then there is 2015 Peyton Manning. Those are two different people. Manning in 2015 was the worst quarterback to ever win a Super Bowl. Manning led the league in interceptions, throwing almost twice as many picks as touchdowns. He led the league despite missing seven regular season starts.

Brock Osweiler went 5-2 in his seven starts in relief for Manning. This created the narrative that any quarterback could perform better than Manning at his age and ability. The Broncos pushed the theory to the limit by letting Osweiler leave via free agency despite the retirement of Peyton Manning.

Trevor Siemian, a seventh-round pick known for tripping over his own feet on a game-winning play in college took over. Throughout three and a half weeks Siemian did not just replace 2015 Peyton Manning, he has been better than what the Broncos got out of the quarterback position last season.

So if the Broncos do move onto Paxton Lynch, how bad would he have to be to hurt this team? The Broncos are absolutely loaded. As long as Lynch does not throw two interceptions for every touchdown it does not seem he will be the problem. That is not the tallest task to ask for, rookie or not.

Overall, whether it be Paxton Lynch or Trevor Siemian moving forward in 2016, the Broncos are going to remain competitive. The quarterback position just does not matter as much to the Broncos as some other teams. So while Trevor Siemian has been a pleasant surprise, Broncos nation should have no fear in the thoughts that Paxton Lynch may get a chance to take over the show in the near future.