Pro Bowl cornerback Chris Harris raised a few eyebrows late last month when he suggested that Trevor Siemian has a legitimate chance to start the NFL kickoff game in September.
As the Denver Broncos wrapped up their offseason program on Tuesday, coach Gary Kubiak threw his own support toward the No. 250 overall pick in the 2015 draft.
"Trevor and Mark have looked each other in the eyes the whole offseason," said Kubiak, via The Denver Post. "When I sit there and watch them practice, I think they're right there banging on each other."
What that means, of course, is that first-round pick Paxton Lynch is poised to enter training camp as No. 3 on the QB depth chart.
It shouldn't come as a major surprise that Siemian remains in the hunt after Kubiak divided first-team reps equally in offseason practices.
He fell in the draft due to an ACL injury in his final season at Northwestern. As NFL Media analyst Nate Burleson recently pointed out, Siemian showed impressive field vision, ball placement and poise in preseason action last summer. Offensive coordinator Rick Dennison emphasized to NFL Media's James Palmer how much Siemian learned from Peyton Manning about running an NFL offense in his first season.
Don't rule Lynch out of the competition just yet, however. General manager John Elway firmly believes the former Memphis star can shorten the NFL learning curve this summer.
Sanchez and Siemian should be well ahead of the rookie in offseason practices, where the mental side of the game is emphasized in team drills.
As the most physically gifted of the trio, Lynch will have an opportunity to make up ground through superior arm talent and athleticism once the footballs start flying in training camp and the preseason.
