While the Broncos sort out their quarterback of the present, they have been busy finalizing a deal for their quarterback of the future.
Paxton Lynch signed his rookie contract Thursday, per the team. The 6-foot-7 quarterback, believed by some to have the highest ceiling of this year's rookie quarterbacks, was taken with the No. 26 pick in the draft.
Lynch's four-year deal is worth $9.476 million, which includes a $5.09 million signing bonus, NFL Media's Rand Getlin reported, per sources informed of the deal. Also sources with knowledge of the deal told NFL Media's James Palmer that Lynch will receive $600,000 guaranteed in the fourth year of his contract -- a first for a player selected late in the opening round of the draft.
Lynch has been making a push for the starting quarterback gig, though it might be difficult to climb the depth chart dramatically before training camp. Coach Gary Kubiak told reporters Tuesday that the Broncos went "1-2-3" at quarterback during that day's practice with Mark Sanchez taking starter's snaps and Trevor Siemian taking snaps with the backups. Sanchez and Siemian are believed to be the front-runners for the job at the moment, with Lynch taking a developmental redshirt year on the back end of Denver's roster.
Lynch was one of the most intriguing prospects available in this year's class. His combination of size and mobility exceeded that of Jared Goff and Carson Wentz, though his non-traditional collegiate offense led some scouts to believe that he'd need some fine tuning at the next level. Lynch has drawn more comparisons to Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota than flame-out dual-threat passers like Vince Young and for good reason: He wants to make his offense run from the pocket. Kubiak, after a Super Bowl win in his first season as head coach, now has the stability to groom Lynch into the quarterback of the future.
