With the entire NFL world at Indianapolis for the 2017 NFL Scouting Combine, rumors about the Denver Broncos and Tony Romo were bound to happen, and today we have our first one.
According to WalterFootball's Charlie Campbell, the Broncos will "intently pursue" veteran quarterback Tony Romo if/when he is released by the Dallas Cowboys.
Broncos still believe in Paxton Lynch, but HC Vance Joseph has decided the team needs Tony Romo to win now https://t.co/egr6ZI5XJM
— Walter Cherepinsky (@walterfootball) March 1, 2017
This comes one day after NFL Network's Ian Rapoport said that the Broncos were "clearly in the driver's seat" for Romo.
According to Campbell, newly hired head coach Vance Joseph believes the Broncos need a veteran quarterback to lead the offense in the immediate future. That guy being veteran Tony Romo.
"Sources say that new Denver Broncos head coach Vance Joseph has looked at the two young quarterbacks on the Broncos roster and has decided the team needs a veteran signal caller for the immediate future. As a result, sources say Denver plans on pursuing Dallas Cowboys Tony Romo intently.
Joseph wants to win now and Romo could buy them more time to develop 2016 first-round pick Paxton Lynch. Team sources say Broncos general manager John Elway is not pushing Lynch on Joseph, and is agreeable to making a run at Romo."
The Broncos are still in a "win now" mode with this defense and going with a veteran quarterback like Romo for one or two years could help the Broncos get another ring or at least make the playoffs sooner than another season with an inexperienced quarterback.
Going with Trevor Siemian or Paxton Lynch, the Broncos will likely go through a similar type of season as they went through last year - growing pains and ultimately not being a serious contender for a Super Bowl.
Romo would have to stay healthy, something he has not done the past few seasons, but if he does, the Broncos would be contenders in the AFC once again. It's really the New England Patriots followed by everyone else. It's wide open, and the Broncos have the pieces in place to contend once again.
But it's not completely clear that Joseph is pursuing Romo.
In his presser at the NFL Combine this morning, Joseph didn't say anything about the veteran quarterback but did mention once again an "open competition" between Siemian and Lynch - stating that the Broncos expect Siemian to be on track for participating in OTAs following his shoulder surgery.
"The team won nine games, and the perception was that the offense wasn't very good, but in my opinion the offense was pretty good," Joseph said. "They didn't finish well in the red zone but the quarterbacks played well. ...Offensively I think we're close. Not as far as everyone thinks we are. On the offensive line - we need some help there. But we're close offensively."
Jospeh added that the challenge for his offensive coordinator Mike McCoy will be designing an offense that fits both quarterbacks well enough for them to compete.
"The problem with Paxton and Trevor is they are so different. Paxton is a tall, big-arm guy, athletic guy. Trevor is fundamentally sound, great footwork, great with the ball , great spin on the ball," the coach said. "Mike's challenge is to find an offense that can fit both guys so they can compete equally."
Joseph gave no timetable for deciding but said "whenever it happens, it happens."
The coach also noted that he's not sure about Lynch's readiness yet. That could leave the door open for a veteran quarterback like Romo, but the coach gave no such obvious indication.
"Is he ready, I'm not sure. Obviously he's got great skills. He's a tall man with a big arm. Is he ready? That's a tough question," Joseph acknowledged. "He had two starts last year. Trevor played also. It's going to be an open competition. Whoever wins the job, that's who is going to play...that's as fair as it can be."
But the Romo rumors weren't the only interesting storyline to come from this. Campbell says if the Broncos do indeed sign Romo, they would "move on" from Siemian.
"Denver has a lot to offer Romo in terms of a team ready to win now. After all, the Broncos were celebrating a Super Bowl victory just one year ago. They have an elite defense, and talented wide receivers to appeal to Romo for making another January run. Sources say if the Broncos are able to add Romo, they would move on from Trevor Siemian."
It wouldn't make sense to keep all three quarterbacks in this scenario.
Likely, the Broncos and Elway would want to continue developing Lynch and have him back up Tony Romo in case he gets hurt again. This would bump 2016 starter Siemian back to a third-string role, and he proved last season that he's more than a third stringer in the NFL. So if this report/rumor is true, it appears Siemian would land on the trade block if the Broncos sign Romo.
With a poor quarterback market and reports saying the Patriots are not trading Jimmy Garoppolo, the Broncos may be able to get a decent return for Siemian. Keep in mind, Rick Dennison is in Buffalo, and they may decide to move on from Tyrod Taylor, so that is a potential landing spot for Siemian.
The report also states that the Houston Texans will go after Romo as well. So for the second straight year, the Broncos and Texans will be chasing the same quarterback, but this time the quarterback wants to play for the Broncos.
Now keep in mind, this is just a rumor for now. I am sure we will see more reports and rumors come out in the coming days and weeks leading up to Free Agency, but this is interesting.
So what do you think Broncos Country? If the Broncos do indeed sign Romo, do you think they should move on from Siemian? Or do you think the Broncos stick with "the two young kids?"