McCoy: Broncos’ O-line will be a mix of power, zone schemes

Good morning, Broncos Country!

New offensive coordinator Mike McCoy has repeatedly said he’s going to build an offense to fit what his players do best.

Though it’s too soon for him to know exactly what that is until the new offensive coaching staff has a chance to work with the players, McCoy certainly knows some strengths having watched film before his San Diego Chargers played the Broncos twice last season (and, uh, beating them one of those times).

So McCoy has some ideas about the quarterbacks, noting Trevor Siemian’s work in the pocket and Paxton Lynch’s athleticism.

"[With Siemian] you see as a young player the decisions he’s made, moving the football down the field, you like some of the things that he does in the pocket," McCoy said, noting a play in the game against the Saints where Siemian stepped up in the pocket under pressure and completed a 10-yard strike to A.J. Derby. "It’s exciting to see some of the things he’s done."

Although there’s very little game film on Lynch, McCoy had scouted the Memphis quarterback several years ago, and the coach still remembers the 40-yard pass down the sideline.

"It’s the arm strength that obviously sticks out," McCoy said, joking that he might have played a few games in this league if he could have made those same throws. "He is an athletic player, and can see some things he can do with his feet, but I’m really looking forward to working with both of them. I think they’re both going to really enjoy the system that we’re going to build here."

One of the looming questions for McCoy is what will be done with the offensive line. Will the Broncos stick with the zone blocking scheme as they’ve done the past two years with Gary Kubiak and which assistant offensive line coach John Benton specializes, or will they go back to a power scheme that new O-line coach Jeff Davidson prefers?

The answer is both. And more.

"We will do what our players do best - not just in passing game or what our quarterbacks do, but also running the football," McCoy said, noting that the "systems" he’s run have been a little bit of zone and power. "That’s going to change each week. Who are we playing? What kind of defense do they have? We’ll have the power play in, inside zone, outside zone, and a number of other plays with wrinkles off both. This is our team, this is what we do best, and we’ll go from there."

Perhaps one of the most comforting things about McCoy stepping into this position is his approach to the recent chasm developing between the offense and defense during the season.

For the seasoned coach, the past is the past. This is a new offense with a new approach.

"The most important thing right now is to buy in to change, and then we’ll figure out what our players do best," McCoy said. "Did they perform a certain way? We’re not worrying about that. We’re putting our system together. We’re trying to improve."

The coordinator has high expectations, and he plans to hold his offense to those every day.

"We’re going to learn from our mistakes," he said. "We’re going to set the bar very high and ask every day, how can we be better tomorrow?"

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