The Denver Broncos have named Trevor Siemian their starting quarterback for the 2016 NFL season. They kick off the season Sept. 8 against the Carolina Panthers.
Denver Broncos Name Trevor Siemian Starting Quarterback
The Broncos defeated the Panthers in Super Bowl 50 back on Feb. 7. The game was the final game of quarterback Peyton Manning‘s career. Outside linebacker Von Miller, the second overall pick in the 2011 NFL Draft, was named Super Bowl MVP. Panthers quarterback Cam Newton was the first overall pick in the 2011 NFL Draft.
The Broncos had finished the season 11-5 and clinched the #1 seed in the AFC after the New England Patriots lost in Week 17. They defeated the Patriots and the Pittsburgh Steelers in the playoffs to advance to Super Bowl 50.
Backup Brock Osweiler, who saw a lot of action in 2015 after Manning was benched, would have been the leading candidate for the staring job in 2016. However, he signed a four-year, $72 million deal with the Houston Texans after Denver won the Super Bowl.
The team signed former New York Jets and Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Mark Sanchez. Sanchez led the Jets to two consecutive AFC Championship games in 2009 and 2010. He also started the second half of the 2014 season for the Eagles.
They also drafted Memphis University quarterback Paxton Lynch with the 31st overall pick in the NFL Draft back in April. It was a three-way quarterback battle during training camp.
Sanchez showed that he was not the right quarterback for this team during the preseason. Lynch didn’t see much playing time at all. That led up to head coach Gary Kubiak to name Siemian the team’s starting quarterback job.
Siemian was drafted in the seventh round by the Broncos in the 2015 NFL Draft out of Northwestern University. He finished as the school’s fourth all-time leading passer with 5,931 passing yards.
The only quarterback competition now is the backup competition between Sanchez and Lynch.
