Word on the street is Osweiler might be available soon. Might Elway be getting a chance to prove he can actually pick QB's? |
In the effort to remain fair, I've even conceded to those who've insisted that it is just too soon to really tell if Lynch can play. What I can not concede to is this farce of a quarterback battle in Denver that was designed for, and by, the General Manager and Executive VP of operations, John Elway. Despite the reality that every preseason is a preamble to the regular season- complete with many dozens of new prospects at every position- the Broncos felt they needed to formally announce that the quarterback position was uniquely up for grabs, unlike the rest.
Entering the new year with a repetitious chant of this being a 50-50 battle for the quarterback job was a message to the guy who finished as last years starter. That message was unnecessary because it was inherent to the fact that any 2nd year 1st round selection would probably be pushed to justify the selection. Seeing what we have in Lynch had to be part of the expectations of hiring when Elway selected Vance Joseph to lead this team, but Elway should have also realized that Joseph was beloved by his previous players for an obvious inability to bullshit very well.
While Joseph stammered through multiple press conferences over the course of this competition trying to convince Broncos fans that he was the only reason why things were being done this way, Joseph fell off script in the final announcement of the team's starter by accidentally saying; "he (Paxton Lynch) is just not ready yet".
No one really took that statement for much of anything when it was stated- except Trevor Siemian. To the ears of this team's current starting quarterback, those words mean you are simply here to keep the seat warm until Paxton Lynch can finally satisfy the emotion that must have led to Elway taking the leap of faith on him last year during the draft. In hindsight, his name is way cooler than his game.
In hindsight, Elway was likely lured into reaching because word had it that Dallas was also interested in Lynch. As a highly rated arm-chair quarterback, I personally think Jerry Jones would have easily given a 2nd and 3rd round versus the 2nd and 4th round pick that he reportedly offer to get at Lynch, if he was truly interested in getting Lynch as his quarterback of the future.
Whether Jones realized Dak Prescott was that quarterback is pure speculation at this point....kinda like the notion that Lynch can actually play quarterback in the NFL.
Coach Joseph can try to convince Broncos Nation that he is thrilled to have two quarterbacks out of this battle, but he can't erase the fact that he actually said that one of them is not ready yet. That may not seem like much of a statement, but it doesn't acknowledge the reality that anything- including sickness, accidents or on-field injuries- would force this team to insert a player that is admittedly, not ready yet.
Would a week or two, or three, be enough to get him ready, or was the suggestion by Joseph that "who knows what he will look like in week 6 or 7" a hidden statement about how far away from ready Lynch really is? Does practicing with the 2's offer enough motivation for Lynch to actually get the work in and get better, or will he stagnate from depression as he appeared to do last year when he got beat out for the job as well?
I'm hopeful that Lynch is not a waste of a pick, but not more than I'm hopeful for Siemian, who has already justified his draft slot and then some. Siemian has performed and improved at the rate that we are hoping and praying for Lynch to perform and improve at, yet we keep looking for a quarterback.
I am not at all convinced that our brand new coach is fully bought into the process of diminishing the confidence of the offensive player who needs it the most while continually posturing as a team waiting on somebody else. Nobody needs to be told about the hopes that teams place in their 1st round draft picks. GM's keep or lose jobs all of the time from making or missing on 1st round draft selections. The smartest ones move on sooner than later.
Justified or not, Elway has way more job security than he deserves and ten times that of Coach Joseph. For Elway to toss this spineless decision-making process into the lap of his new coach without standing beside him to help fans understand WHY is frankly a bitch move.
Joseph would not have slipped up and gone off-script by saying Siemian is not ready YET if he were not so damn honest, and if the front office wasn't still pushing to prove they can really pick 'em.
If we hadn't been forced to listen to a world leader tell us things we obviously shouldn't believe, I might be less inclined to hold the Broncos to task for all of this. But Siemian had to do a press conference and probably listened to the words of his coach's press conference as he prepared to do his own. To hear that he won the job because Lynch isn't ready yet kinda means Siemian himself wasn't quite good enough to be what the team wants right now either, or they would have emphatically called him the winner of the job and not just the quarterback who is- by default- ready. If I was Siemian, I could not easily believe that the Broncos were invested in my future as a starter in this league.
Correction. Siemian should not believe that Elway is invested in his future as a starter in the NFL. As for Joseph? He picked the right player and instantly sounded like a coach ready to back his guy- bitch be damned.