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Good morning, Country.
Great expectations are something fans certainly have for their beloved Super Bowl champion Denver Broncos. The true question is: How realistic are some of those expectations?
Second-year quarterback Trevor Siemian's efforts to date have been questioned by many and in my opinion, the amount of scrutiny he has received is far too much. While his performances haven't been worthy of Pro-Bowl or All-Pro accolades, they haven't been devastatingly bad enough to hurt the team's chances of winning.
I see a lot of poise and promise for the former Northwestern product and would ask that he be afforded the same courtesy that many young players receive when enter the league. Lets all have a bit of patience, shall we?
Lets me put this into perspective — Siemian's first meaningful game in the National Football League was a little over two weeks ago against the Carolina Panthers. His second meaningful game was just several days ago against the Indianapolis Colts. In those two games, Siemian has shown demonstrable accuracy with his throws, completing nearly 68% of his attempts for 444 yards a touchdown and three interceptions.
We would all like to see the interception numbers go down, with the touchdown numbers going up. We would all love to see the entire offense display more efficacy in the red zone and score touchdowns instead of field goals. That's reasonable and it's quite obvious that the coaches and players feel the same way.
However, as noted above, it will take some time.
It is important to note that Siemian's struggles to date haven't been because of complete mental breakdowns on the field, but can be directly tied to a lack of experience in situational football. As he and his weapons on offense continue to gel, their chemistry and timing will get better. He will become more precise and deliberate with throws. His vision will improve and he will begin to see the entire field and not miss as many open plays as he has to date.
Those sort of things take time and for someone who has only played in two pro games that have been mattered, I am quite impressed with what Siemian has done thus far.
There are a fair amount of people who believe that first-round selection Paxton Lynch should already step in and be the starter. It's a baffling take in my opinion, considering Lynch has less knowledge of the team's overall playbook and even less experience in real game situations that matter.
I don't think anyone is doubting that Lynch is the future for the Broncos at the position, but the coaches who see his progression and performance every day have already signaled with their decision to start Siemian that he isn't ready, and quite possibly, may not be ready for sometime.
In the hypothetical situation that Lynch would ascend to the team's starting quarterback this season, I sure hope that he would be afforded the courtesy of patience that so many are lacking with Siemian.
Have a little faith, patience and optimism, Broncos Country. Our team is 2-0 and as far as I'm concerned, Siemian has nowhere to go but up with his abilities and progression on the football field.
I believe in Trevor Siemian. Do you?
As always, thank you for reading and here is today's offering of Horse Tracks.
Horse Tracks
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