Paxton Lynch’s arrival in CFL adds insult to Broncos quarterback woes

We love anything that makes John Elway look good in our eyes—read: bad—which means that the Denver Broncos quarterback situation has been a source of much joy for the last several years, basically since Peyton Manning left town to star in more commercials.

The latest fun fact came to us via the football transaction wire when we saw the news blip that former Broncos quarterback Paxton Lynch had found a new team: the Saskatchewan Roughriders.

Now look, we would never fault a player for wanting to extend his playing career for as long as he likes at any level. Kudos to Lynch for finding a place to play next season now that his time in the NFL has likely passed. The CFL is an entertaining product and has produced some incredible talent over the years, and we’d certainly wish Lynch all the best as he plies his trade north of the border.

That said, we also love this for what it says about the Broncos.

The latest turn from Paxton Lynch is a good reminder of the Broncos QB issues.

John Elway invested a first-round pick in Paxton Lynch in the 2016 NFL Draft. It feels like forever ago that Lynch was a bust, but he was taken in the same draft that the K.C. Chiefs selected defensive tackle Chris Jones and wide receiver Tyreek Hill. That was five seasons ago.

Lynch would go on to make a total of four starts—FOUR—in only two seasons in Denver before being run out of town. In those two years, he would throw a total of four touchdowns and four interceptions. Heck, he only attempted 128 passes overall. The experiment was over almost as soon as it began; Lynch was clearly not going to make it in the NFL.

What makes the entire situation even more laughable was that Lynch’s tenure with the team came to an end in 2018 before the season began, because the Broncos decided instead to go with the trio of Case Keenum, Chad Kelly, and former Chiefs quarterback Kevin Hogan to begin the season. Yes, that trio won NFL jobs over Lynch despite the Broncos already being invested in him with a first round pick.

In the five drafts since then, the Broncos have selected two more quarterbacks: Kelly, in the seventh round in 2017, and Drew Lock, in the second round of the 2019 NFL Draft. They’ve imported the likes of Joe Flacco, Brandon Allen, and Jeff Driskel. This year, Teddy Bridgewater is the best hope on the roster to help them turn the corner, the same man who was just ran out of Carolina in order to begin the Sam Darnold phase.

For Denver, it’s a frustrating scene at quarterback given the level of talent at other positions. Even in that 2017 draft class, the Broncos actually found a ton of long-term talent, anchored by the selection of safety Justin Simmons. They also added linemen like Adam Gotsis and Conner McGovern, safety Will Parks (now with the Chiefs), and running back Devontae Booker in that same class. The Broncos could be so much better if they would just find their answer at the game’s biggest position.

Until then, however, we’ll enjoy the view from K.C. and hope that George Paton isn’t that much better than his predecessor at finding talent at quarterback.