KC Chiefs: Quarterback situation in AFC West before free agency begins
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DENVER BRONCOS
It’s always nice seeing the Broncos at the bottom of the AFC West, but it’s become a rarity recently. This is the first time that Denver has finished in the cellar of the division since the 2010 season (the Chiefs won the West that year, for what it’s worth).
What has absolutely killed the Broncos these past two seasons (though they did finish at 9-7 in 2016, so not a terrible season by any means) is they haven’t had an established quarterback taking snaps. They went with Trevor Siemian in 2016 and he was okay, but defenses figured him out quickly and once they did, he was done for.
The Broncos have four quarterbacks on their roster and none are good enough to be starters.
Siemian began the 2017 season as the Broncos QB1 and started ten games. He threw for 2,285 yards, 12 touchdowns, and 14 interceptions and was eventually replaced by a combination of Brock Osweiler and Paxton Lynch.
Lynch, as you’ll remember, was the Broncos’ first round pick in the 2016 NFL Draft, who they actually leapfrogged the Chiefs to get. Lynch has shown very little for the Broncos and if he can’t beat out Siemian or Osweiler, then chances are he’s just not very good.
Denver also has Chad Kelly, but he was injured for all of last year and it’s doubtful he ever really gets a shot. I gave the Broncos props for making that pick last draft because they literally had nothing to lose by drafting Kelly. They took him with the very last pick of the draft and that’s about as low risk/high reward as a team can get in the NFL Draft.
So to sum up, the Broncos have four quarterbacks on their roster and none are good enough to be starters. They’ve been linked to Kirk Cousins a lot this offseason and that is a signing I could definitely see happening. Cousins is a good quarterback and needs talent and a solid defense to help him, so Denver would be a good spot for him.
It was reported that Denver reached out to the Chiefs on Alex Smith, but were shot down. That makes a lot of sense, considering the two play each other twice a year, and Kansas City knows Alex Smith can still play. Why give away a talented player to a big time rival? Exactly, you don’t.
The Broncos more than likely will turn to free agency (namely Kirk Cousins), but they also have the sixth overall pick in this year’s draft. That could set them up to select someone like Josh Allen or Baker Mayfield to sit behind Kirk Cousins.
Denver is the only team in the AFC West who really doesn’t have their quarterback situation figured out, but the good news for them is that once they do, they have the potential to jump back up to the top of the division again. Cousins would instantly make Denver a contender in the AFC West, which is why I think John Elway and company will fight hard to get him in a Broncos uniform.