Last Thursday, after the Denver Broncos selected Paxton Lynch with he 26th-overall pick in the 2016 NFL Draft, John Elway made it clear that he and the Broncos staff valued Lynch very highly. He was their guy, and they wanted to make sure he entered the NFL in the orange and blue.
In fact, according to Austin Murphy of Sports Illustrated, the Broncos had Lynch graded out as the second-best quarterback in the draft, just behind No. 2-overall pick Carson Wentz and just in front of No. 1-overall pick Jared Goff.
“That’s at least in part because Lynch, an exceptionally athletic 6-foot-7, 244 pounds, is ideal for Denver coach Gary Kubiak’s system, which emphasizes stretch plays, rollouts and play-action,” Murphy wrote.
That says a lot.
If Elway truly values Lynch on equal footing with Wentz and Goff, then selecting him 25 spots later in the draft is fantastic value. This is a long-term selection for Elway and the Broncos. Like NFL Network’s Mike Mayock said after the draft, the talent is undeniable; it’s just a matter of when he’ll be ready to showcase it at an NFL level.
“I love the kid and I believe in him,” said Mayock, “but he’s got a lot of work ahead of him.”
