Broncos should play Paxton Lynch
The Denver Broncos are out of the race. They have been out of the playoff picture since October, when the team embarked on an eight-game losing streak.
Since then, the team has rifled through quarterback Trevor Siemian, Brock Osweiler and Paxton Lynch. During Thursday night’s win against the Indianapolis Colts, Siemian suffered a sprained shoulder and was forced to leave the game. Osweiler came in revived the team and beat the Colts for Denver’s fifth win of the year, but he shouldn’t be the starter going forward after Siemian was placed on Injured Reserve.
Lynch has only started one game this season but was forced to leave against the Oakland Raiders with an ankle sprain. Now, with two games left in the year, Lynch is healthy and if head coach Vance Joseph can see the forest from the trees, he should get the nod over Osweiler.
Osweiler isn’t the future in Denver, something he proved during his first stint with the Broncos and then his disastrous campaign in 2016 with the Houston Texans. While the veteran showed moxie and skill in the win over the Colts, there’s no reason to believe that’s an indication of the future.
Lynch is signed for another two seasons and a third is under control with a team option. The Broncos have to find out if Lynch can play at this level sooner rather than later, and sitting him on the bench behind Osweiler over the next two weeks isn’t helping anybody. Denver is giving Lynch a chance to prove himself in two games that mean absolutely nothing in the standings, giving him the latitude to play loose and show that his 41-yard performance against the Raiders was a fluke.
Going into the upcoming offseason, general manager John Elway has ample issues to resolve. The Broncos have holes on the offensive and defensive lines along with questions at the receiver ad tight end positions. Elway also has to figure out what to do with Joseph and his staff, although it’s likely he gets a second season. Of course, though, the Broncos have to fix the quarterback depth chart, and if Lynch looks awful over the past two weeks, that helps the answer become clearer.
After investing a first-round pick in Lynch in April 2016, Denver owes it to both Lynch and the organization to find out whether the former Memphis star can improve and play in the NFL. Anything short of a full audition over the next few games would be a shortsighted decision by a franchise that can’t afford to leave any stones unturned.
