Denver Broncos

Here's why it didn't matter who won the Broncos' starting QB job

Published Nov. 15, 2016 2:25 p.m. ET

Cameron DaSilva

Unlike most Super Bowl champions, the Denver Broncos entered this offseason having no idea who would start at quarterback in 2016. Peyton Manning retired, Brock Osweiler chose the Houston Texans and Denver was left with one active quarterback on the roster: Trevor Siemian.

On Monday, Siemian was named the regular-season starter – a move no one could have predicted a few months ago. The Broncos made a concerted effort to bring in the necessary reinforcements by trading for Mark Sanchez and drafting Paxton Lynch in the first round, but neither player was unable to beat out Siemian in camp.

That’s both indicative of Siemian’s talent and the lack of confidence coach Gary Kubiak has in Sanchez and Lynch. Sanchez was a disaster in the preseason, and Lynch doesn’t have the experience to lead a defending Super Bowl champion despite having the best arm talent of the three.

Through all of the smoke screens and secrets kept by the coaching staff regarding the quarterback competition, it was all a moot point. Siemian may have won the battle, but it didn’t matter who came out on top. The Broncos are what they are: a defensive juggernaut.

Denver won a Super Bowl last season not because of Peyton Manning’s arm or a stellar running game. Demaryius Thomas didn’t carry the Broncos against the Panthers, or any other team for that matter. It was the defense that dominated and earned the storied franchise another trophy.

The Broncos defense didn’t necessarily improve this offseason, but it remains the best in football. Von Miller is a 20-sack candidate, and DeMarcus Ware has proved he still has plenty left in the tank after recording 7 1/2 sacks in just 11 games last season. Danny Trevathan no longer heads the middle of the linebacking group, but Brandon Marshall is capable of filling that vacancy.

In the secondary, the duo of Chris Harris Jr. and Aqib Talib is arguably the best cornerback tandem in football. Darian Stewart and T.J. Ward are also solid starting safeties, which allows Denver’s corners to play as aggressive as they do.

All of those players are very good reasons why the Broncos’ quarterback competition didn’t matter. Whoever won the job was going to play second-fiddle to the defense, as he should. Manning did last season, and he’s a surefire Hall of Famer. Sanchez wouldn’t have had a Pro Bowl-caliber season with 4,000 yards and 30 touchdowns. Lynch wasn’t going to put up those numbers, either.

Siemian certainly won’t, but he doesn’t need to.

All three quarterbacks -- until Lynch finds his way -- are very similar: mediocre signal callers who would have a hard time starting for about 30 other teams. That’s not a good thing to have at the most important position in sports.

Last season, Manning and Osweiler combined to throw for 3,970 yards (14th), 19 touchdowns (29th) and 23 interceptions (most in the NFL). Yet, the Broncos still won the Super Bowl. Denver fans can expect more of the same this year – with fewer passing yards – but assuming they’ll make another Super Bowl run is a bit premature.

It’s hard to win in the NFL without a quarterback. It’s even harder to do it two years in a row. Siemian doesn’t make Denver’s Super Bowl odds any better than Sanchez or Lynch would have. As it stands, they have the ninth-best odds to win another ring, according to Bovada.

If the Broncos are going to make another run at a championship, it’s going to be on the strength of their defense – not their quarterback. They’ll rank in the middle to bottom part of the league in just about every passing statistic, whether it’s Siemian under center in Week 3 or Lynch throwing to Thomas in Week 10 after he rises to the top of the depth chart.

It’s great that the Broncos now have a starting quarterback, but don’t get too excited about it. They’ll live and die on the defensive side of the ball.