One of the top personality traits we saw in Paxton Lynch coming out of Memphis in 2016 was his relaxed, fun-loving nature. Anyone willing to slide into an inflatable swan and play giant Jenga for his rookie premiere photos has to have a sense of humor.
But as the pressure has increased for Lynch to take the reins of one of football’s top franchises, it seems that not only has his laid-back attitude been stretched thin, so too has his confidence.
After an inconsistent performance against the 49ers on Saturday, Lynch admitted that throughout the quarterback competition with Trevor Siemian he’s been overly critical of himself.
“I know that kind of throughout this process I’ve been kind of beating myself up over some mistakes,” Lynch said. “Just because you always want to be perfect. You want to make every play. And, I think that’s something that I’ve always done when I make a mistake. I think about it a little longer than I should.”
So we’re now learning that despite his fun-loving nature it’s not all fun and games – especially when he’s not performing up to his level of expectations.
The good news for those rooting for the second-year QB is that Lynch is getting support and encouragement from just about every level of the organization.
Earlier this week Broncos President of Football Operations and General Manager John Elway, who moved up to draft Lynch 26th overall in 2016, had this to say about Lynch’s performance both in the short and long term.
“I think what you saw in Paxton [Thursday] is he played with a little more confidence than he has in the past. I think anytime he does that he’s a lot more successful. That comes with youth too. You have your ups and downs as youths and the consistency is not there where you want it to be. That’s why you continue to practice, continue to work and continue to get better,” Elway said.
“I’ve got confidence in the fact that they’re both young and they’re going to continue with practice and getting better. That’s why I had confidence in it,” he said soon after about both Lynch and Siemian.
Lynch is also receiving encouragement from his head coach, as well as one of the big men protecting him, guard Billy Turner.
“Coach [Vance] Joseph and BT do a good job at encouraging me, and so do all the other guys too. Keeping my head up and keeping me moving forward, but I definitely thought about it as I’ve been moving forward I’ve been keeping my head up, so guys around me can see that.”
Moving forward and improved confidence has been an ongoing theme for Lynch this preseason. He touched on those two things specifically back on Aug. 5 when asked how new quarterbacks coach Bill Musgrave has helped him this year.
“Just in my confidence level I think. Just coming out here and knowing that he trusts me and [Offensive Coordinator Mike] McCoy trust me to come out here and take your chances. Obviously you’re going to make mistakes but the biggest thing is putting the day behind you and moving on from it whether it’s a good day or a bad day.”
Whether or not he wins the quarterback competition with Trevor Siemian this year, it seems clear that the Broncos have no intention of moving on from Lynch. Their focus appears intent on improving his confidence and giving him every opportunity to succeed.
“Yeah, I mean in my opinion we’ve got two quarterbacks,” Joseph said after Denver’s win in Santa Clara. “We’ve got two good young quarterbacks that I’ve been pleased with the entire camp, you know? So, whoever wins the job is going to be the right guy for our football team, and whoever’s the backup is going to be a pretty good backup. So, it’s exciting to have two guys.”
That’s something Lynch can build on and have confidence in.