Give Denver Broncos head coach Vance Joseph some credit. He handled a redundant question much more politely than other, more grizzled head coaches might have.
One day after he outright told the media that the quarterback competition would extend into training camp and preseason, Joseph had to reinforce that nothing will be decided during the break between OTAs/minicamp and training camp.
“I will not do that,” Joseph said Wednesday when asked if he would pick a starting quarterback during the break. “Our original plan was to teach the offense this entire spring and give those two guys a chance to compete evenly. Our plan is in place. It will be more of a training camp competition.”
Compare that answer to this one, when he was asked Tuesday how much OTAs and minicamp affect the quarterback competition:
“Probably zero-to-none, to be honest. It’s going to be won on the football field. It’s going to be won in the games in the preseason. That’s where evaluation starts in my opinion.”
Other professional coaches, the Spurs’ Gregg Popovich for example, aren’t quite so relaxed when asked redundant questions, but Joseph took this one in stride. Credit the first-time head coach with keeping a cool head about a line of questioning that will only intensify and grow more irksome over time.
There is no bigger concern on the Denver sports scene than who’s quarterbacking the Broncos, and Joseph has certainly been thrown into fire with the current situation.
Trevor Siemian earned the starting job in 2016 by beating out first-round draft pick Paxton Lynch and NFL veteran Mark Sanchez, thanks in large part to his mastery of the playbook and ability to play mistake-free football. Siemian guided Denver to an 8-6 record in games he started, while battling a left shoulder injury through most of the season.
Denver missed the playoffs for the first time since 2010 with Siemian at the helm, leading the league in three-and-outs and second-to-last in third down conversions. The Broncos ranked in the bottom third of the league in touchdowns per game and passing first downs per game. Individually, Siemian passed for 3,401 yards and 18 touchdowns and 10 interceptions. That cumulative performance has left the door open for Lynch in 2017.
The No. 25 overall pick in 2016, Lynch was 1-1 in two spot starts in place of Siemian last year. He threw for 497 yards, two touchdowns and an interception on the season, which also included one half of the game against Tampa Bay when he replaced Siemian because of an injury.
Both Siemian and Lynch face the disadvantage of having to learn their second offensive system in as many years under new offensive coordinator Mike McCoy. So far, McCoy and Joseph have been pleased with the progress their young quarterbacks are making, but aren’t about to jump into a decision about who will start in the opener on Sept. 11.
“All of the quarterbacks have done a nice job of picking up the system and directing the traffic,” McCoy said after Wednesday’s practice. “There’s a lot they do at the line of scrimmage and there are certain things we’re going to ask them to do in terms of getting us in and out of plays.”
He was also quick to point out that the quarterback competition also includes rookies Chad Kelly and Kyle Sloter.
“I think they’re headed in the right direction—all of them, not just the two that you’re thinking about right now. Kyle [Sloter] has done a nice job moving the offense in there and running the system.”
McCoy also reinforced Joseph’s message that the QB competition won’t really get underway until training camp and the preseason.
“We’re going to let them compete and some point in time we’re going to figure it out as a staff who the guy is,” McCoy said.
So, for those who haven’t been listening, this quarterback competition won’t be decided any time soon.
The questions will no doubt be asked over and over again – it is, after all, the media’s job to ask those questions even if they become redundant – just don’t expect an answer in the near future.