Vance Joseph shook his head incredulously and then repeated, almost verbatim, what he said weeks prior.
“We’ve got two young guys that we believe in,” he said, standing in the corridor of the Indiana Convention Center amid a stampede of media and draft prospects.
“They won nine games combined and probably should have won more,” he added. “… We’re fine.”
Few wanted to believe him that day at the NFL combine. Few wanted to believe him when he uttered similar words at the Broncos’ headquarters weeks before. And few still wanted to accept his comments during his latest address, at the league meetings last week.
“We have two young guys that we feel really good about,” Joseph began again in Phoenix. “I’ve said it 10 times, this team won nine games last year with two rookie quarterbacks. They probably could have won 10 or 11. We feel strong about our two young guys.”
Despite what Joseph and general manager John Elway said in months past, it wasn’t Tuesday that the their declarations began to set in as reality.
Denver is moving forward with a pair of quarterbacks in Trevor Siemian and Paxton Lynch who cost pennies compared to most starters and who might be able to lead the Broncos back to the playoffs — maybe even deep into the postseason — along with an improved offensive line and more efficient run game.
The Broncos’ faith in the two can no longer be questioned.
No, the question now is who will join Siemian and Lynch in the quarterback room.
Joseph has also said multiple times that the Broncos will bring on a third quarterback for depth. If itap a veteran, it’ll be a younger veteran, he said. Or it could be a rookie, pulled from the class of 2017’s relatively shallow pool of quarterbacks.
“We have to add a third in some capacity,” Joseph said. “Now, could that third outplay our one and two? if he’s that good, absolutely. But right now, we have a one and two in our building.”
The faith and focus are on the two returning quarterbacks both of which were rookies, in most respects, and are pressured to make the critical Year 2 leap.
But it’s foreseeable QB No. 3 could be a guy making his return, as well, be it Austin Davis, who has played only 13 games over his five-year NFL career but has the experience of working for the Broncos and with their current two quarterbacks. Or Christian Ponder, who temporarily joined the Broncos in 2015 when Peyton Manning was nursing a foot injury.
Lingering in the background is Matt McGloin, the former Raider who started in place of Derek Carr for Broncos’ season finale in Denver, and even Blaine Gabbert, who went 1-4 as a starter in San Francisco last season before losing his job to Colin Kaepernick.
In the draft, the Broncos have a bevy of picks — 10, all-told. They don’t need a franchise quarterback, and finding one in a draft is rare anyway. Unlike last year, when Elway moved up to land Denver’s possible quarterback of the future in Lynch, depth and development are key this time around. The selection of a quarterback, if one is selected at all, would likely get pushed to a later round, if not to the list of undrafted players.
Denver has priorities and holes to fill in the draft, namely an offensive tackle, defensive line depth, perhaps a fourth cornerback, maybe a tight end or a slot receiver, maybe another inside linebacker or running back.
“We have to go into the draft with an open mind as far as taking the best player for our needs,” Joseph said. “Itap a combination of both. Itap not only the best player, but itap your need. If there is a tackle there that has a first-round grade from us, thatap awesome.”
“The third (quarterback) is going to fall to us. Whether it is the draft or free agency, that won’t be hard to do.”
And in the meantime, Nos. 1 and 2 will again take center stage. Their place on the depth chart will be determined by multiple factors in another open competition this year, but to know where things stand now, go back to what Joseph said about Siemian:
“Obviously, he has more experience. He had a fine year,” Joseph said during his introductory news conference in January. “I watched him getting smart. He’s fast with the ball. He makes little error with the football and thatap important.”
Go back to what he said about Lynch:
“Paxton is a young guy with great talent,” Joseph said last month. “But playing quarterback in the NFL has a lot more than talent. It’s leadership. Whether you like it or not, it comes with leadership obligations. It comes with studying in it and understanding the systems.”
And go back to what Joseph said about the Broncos’ future at quarterback:
“They’re so different. Playing quarterback in this league is about decision-making,” he said at the league meetings. “That is important. They both are young guys. They both have to learn that part of playing the game. If they do that, we’re going to win football games. Itap going to be a great competition in the spring and the fall, and the best man wins.”
Listen to Joseph.
ROSTER MOVE. The Broncos waived defensive lineman Travis Raciti on Wednesday, according to an NFL source. A 2015 undrafted free agent out of San Jose State, Raciti joined Denver’s practice squad last December and signed a reserve/future contract in January.
