Decision on starting quarterback will change Broncos offense

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — The tides are turning at Dove Valley when it comes to the quarterbacks.

The shift isn’t in who the starting quarterback will be per se, but more so a change in what the offense will look like depending on which quarterback is under center.

Earlier in the offseason, the initial dialogue out of the UCHealth Training Center was that the offense wouldn’t be built for one specific quarterback, rather one system that will fit both young quarterbacks. On Thursday, during the final day of the Broncos’ first week of OTAs, offensive coordinator Mike McCoy pumped the breaks on that idea.

When asked if the playbook will be catered to the strengths of each quarterback, the veteran coach said, “It hasn’t right now because we’re installing the system for everybody. We’re trying to figure out what those guys do best.”

“Right now” being the key words to his answer. For McCoy, OTAs are a time to install the new offense — basically setting the foundation for the playbook. During this time, the offense learns a limited number of plays that the offense will then be built around more in-depth come training camp and preseason. At this time, as the offense adds more wrinkles, the offense will be catered to each quarterback.

“We’re always going to adjust to our personnel. As time goes on, we’ll find out what each player does best,” McCoy said. “What’s the best thing for those group of 11 guys on the field? That’s one thing that I truly believe in — we have to adjust to our personnel and what our players do best. We will figure that out in the next couple of months.”

In a small way, that process of tailoring to each specific quarterback has already begun.

“There are certain periods [in OTAs] where it is competitive; I’ll lean on what [the quarterbacks] told me they like… through the communication process with the quarterbacks,” McCoy explained. “I want to know what they like and what they feel like they do best in our new system. We’re trying to figure out our system, what each quarterback does, and come training camp, and through the preseason games, we’ll figure out what they do best and put them in a position to be successful.”

With one week of OTAs under their belt, it’s too early to know this information yet. However, by the time OTAs are over — after the mandatory minicamp June 13-15 — McCoy and his staff will have a better understanding of what fits each quarterback best.

“We’ve only had the three practices so far at full speed, so hopefully by the time we leave for vacation, we’ll have a good feel for what they like, but there will be plenty of things that we are going to add come training camp,” he said. “We’re really learning about ourselves as an offense right now, both coaches and players. We’re trying to figure out what do we do best, and at the time that we get ready to play a game at the opener, we’ll figure out what those players do best.”

While the majority of the attention outside of the building will be on Trevor Siemian and Paxton Lynch, the coaching staff will also cater to the two rookies, Chad Kelly and Kyle Sloter.

During the next three weeks, as the team wraps up the offseason training program, the message from McCoy to all of his offensive players — from rookies, to quarterbacks, to even Demaryius Thomas — is simple: Worry about yourself.

“The most important thing right now — and it’s really the whole entire offense — is put yourself in a position come training camp to earn a spot on the football team,” he said. “Don’t worry about anybody else, just take care of your own job. That’s what I tell all of the players, not just the two young receivers, but everybody. ‘Learn the system, when you leave this office, you got to study.’ That’s the most important thing.”

With Siemian and Lynch rotating evenly through each practice, a major concern is that it could be slowing down the progression of the offense. Fortunately for the Broncos, according to Thomas, this isn’t the case, yet. When asked if the rotating quarterbacks during practice made it difficult for the offense, Thomas responded, “Not right now.”

As of now, it’s status quo for the offense. However, once camp rolls around at the end of July, Mike McCoy will do what he does best—build an offense to the strength of each individual player, most importantly Siemian and Lynch.