Gary Kubiak: Don’t count out Trevor Siemian
By John Buhler
The Denver Broncos will have a fierce quarterback battle in training camp, but head coach Gary Kubiak says don’t count out Trevor Siemian on winning it.
According to Troy Renck of The Denver Post, Denver Broncos head coach Gary Kubiak believes that last year’s third-string quarterback Trevor Siemian could conceivably win the 2016 starting job over veteran Mark Sanchez and first round pick out of Memphis Paxton Lynch.
Kubiak told Renck, “Trevor knows the offense. He’s very comfortable and can throw the ball too. We’ve also seen him make big plays in the preseason games under the lights. I wouldn’t sleep on Trevor to win the job, either.”
Kubiak runs an ultra-conservative offense that prides itself on running the football. It absolutely helps that Denver returns much of a historically great defense under defensive coordinator Wade Phillips in 2016 that is just coming off a Super Bowl victory.
With Peyton Manning retiring and Brock Osweiler deciding to sign with the AFC South’s Houston Texans, the starting quarterback job in Denver is very much up for grabs. Ideally, team president John Elway would want to build his team around Lynch in the coming years, but Lynch is coming from a non-traditional football power outside of the Power 5 in The American’s Memphis Tigers.
While Sanchez is a former No. 5 overall pick by the New York Jets, he largely failed as a starter under Rex Ryan in New York. However, he still offers tremendous value as one of the better backups in the NFL.
With offensive line play being so horrendous under the current collective bargaining agreement, it is imperative to have a more than capable backup quarterback should anything happen to the star. Sanchez would thrive in a backup role, but may not offer the upside of Lynch does as a starter.
As for Siemian, he did play at a high level for a non-traditional football power with the Northwestern Wildcats under great head coach Pat Fitzgerald. Siemian was the perfect vertical passer to complement read option starter Kain Colter during some great years at Northwestern.
Knowing the Broncos playbook is a huge boon for Siemian in this now three-headed quarterback race in Denver, he’ll certainly get a fair opportunity to win the starting job. However if Lynch progresses quicker than expected, he’ll win the job as soon as he is ready. Sanchez provides great competition for Siemian and Lynch in this sure-to-be highly publicized quarterback race in the Mile High City.
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