Stokley: Broncos QB switch could have been made weeks ago

Update: The Denver Broncos made official on Wedneday that Brock Osweiler would start Sunday against the Eagles in Philadelphia. For more, click here.

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Trailing 14-0 at halftime just a little more than a week ago against the Los Angeles Chargers on the road, the Denver Broncos could have made the move at quarterback, Brandon Stokley said.

At the time, quarterback Trevor Siemian was 11-for-17 for 89 yards and no touchdowns while heading for a shutout loss, the team’s first in nearly 25 years.

The change could have been made Monday, the “Stokley & Zach” co-host said, after Siemian was picked off by Kansas City Chiefs cornerback Marcus Peters midway through the first quarter.

Or, it could have been made at halftime, at which point Siemian had thrown two of his three interceptions in a 29-19 loss at Arrowhead Stadium.

But on Tuesday, though Broncos head coach Vance Joseph said “everything is being explored after losing three in a row,” Siemian remains the man under center for Denver for now.

“It’s time to make the change. What is taking so long?” Stokley said on Tuesday. “Let’s make the move already. You’re not out of contention. It’s still right there for you. You need to find a spark. It’s not all on Trevor, but something needs to be done. It’s taken way too long.”

Both Stokley and his afternoon co-host, Zach Bye concluded that at some point this week Brock Osweiler will be named the Broncos quarterback for Sunday’s game against the Philadelphia Eagles.

But, it’s a move Stokley said could have taken place weeks ago.

“I definitely think Brock Osweiler will start on Sunday. You have no other choice. You can ‘t keep doing the same things over and over,” Stokley said. “What frustrated me, listening to Vance, he said it’s fair to evaluate the quarterback and every other position when you lose three in a row. I say that every week.

“Why does it take you to lose three in a row, four out of five, to start really evaluating the quarterback position?”

On Tuesday, Joseph said coming out of training camp his mindset was that Siemian was the starter from that point on, but losing three straight, and how Denver’s lost those games, has changed his thinking.

“Again, when you lose three in a row and how we’ve lose the football games — again, yesterday on offense with four turnovers — I think everything is up for discussion at this point of the season,” Joseph said.

However, Siemian won’t be challenged — at least this week — by training camp challenger Paxton Lynch, who just worked back into practice last week after suffering a shoulder injury during the preseason.

Earlier Tuesday, ESPN NFL Insider Adam Schefter said Lynch could get “strong consideration” for the quarterback role, should the Broncos make a switch, but Joseph said that wouldn’t be fair to the team or the young gunslinger to bring him back so quickly.

“Obviously, Paxton is still healing up. He practiced four days last week, and he’s getting better day by day,” Joseph said. “It would be unfair to put Paxton out there right now. (He) hasn’t played football since Week 3 in the preseason.”

Follow digital content producer Johnny Hart on Twitter: @johnnyhart7.