National Football League

Lynch has always watched Manning, emulated Newton

Updated Mar. 4, 2020 11:07 p.m. ET

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ENGLEWOOD, Colo. (AP) Paxton Lynch says he long appreciated Peyton Manning, whose cleats he's hoping to fill as soon as September. It's the vanquished quarterback from Super Bowl 50, however, that he's always admired.

''Yeah, I mean, you have to watch Peyton. He's one of the greatest of all time, he and (Tom) Brady. I watched the Super Bowl because Cam's my guy,'' Lynch said.

Yes, Cam Newton, the reigning NFL MVP whom Von Miller strip-sacked twice in leading Denver to its 24-10 win 2 1-2 months ago, allowing Manning, the five-time MVP to retire a champion.

''In high school when (Newton) was at Auburn, he was the guy that I kind of mimicked my game after just because he's such an explosive player,'' Lynch explained after his introductory news conference in Denver on Friday.

Although he posed with a No. 1 jersey just like Newton wears, Lynch chose to wear No. 12 for the Broncos.

He'll compete with newcomer Mark Sanchez and 2015 seventh-rounder Trevor Siemian to determine who will be under center when the Broncos begin defense of their Super Bowl title against none other than Newton and the Panthers on Sept. 8.

''I guess that's up to the coaches,'' Lynch said. ''My job is to come in and come to work every day. Day in and day out, give everything I've got.''

General manager John Elway went into the draft looking for a quarterback after losing Brock Osweiler in free agency 48 hours after Manning retired.

Osweiler's four-year, $72 million deal with the Texans includes $37 million in guarantees. Lynch is expected to get slightly more than $9 million over four years with a fifth-year club option.

Lynch said he's ready for a crash course in the pro style offense after running the spread at Memphis, where he threw 28 TD passes against just four interceptions last year.

He's also pinching himself to be a member of the defending champs.

''I mean, it's crazy to think about, if you would have told me whenever I declared for the draft, you could play for the Denver Broncos, you know filling in Peyton Manning's shoes, I would have told you you're crazy. But the opportunity that presents itself here with these other quarterbacks and this coaching staff is probably the best situation I could have ended up in,'' Lynch said.

A spring snowstorm greeted Lynch when he flew in from his home state of Florida.

''The snow was a little different,'' he said. ''The white sand was in the sky. In Florida, the white sand is usually on the ground.''

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AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and www.twitter.com/AP-NFL

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Follow AP Pro Football Writer Arnie Melendrez Stapleton on Twitter: http://twitter.com/arniestapleton

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