Trevor Siemian shines for Broncos in relief of injured Paxton Lynch

At the time Paxton Lynch exited Sunday’s game late in the third quarter, the Denver Broncos trailed the Oakland Raiders 21-0.

Lynch, who came up limping after a short pass to Emmanuel Sanders, said after the game he likely injured his ankle on a previous play but exited the game with just under five minutes left in the third.

“It kept bothering me, but I just thought I could keep playing. And that play, that’s the point where it started to scare me a little bit,” Lynch said. “So, I mentioned something to the trainers, and they thought it wouldn’t be smart to go back in there and possibly make it worse.”

The injury is just the latest in a line of setbacks for Lynch, who seemed visibly upset on the sidelines after being pulled from the game.

“I was just more frustrated with having another injury and having to come out of the game … after I just recovered from one injury and the first game back I hurt my ankle,” Lynch said after the game. “I was kind of upset that I didn’t get to finish the game with my team.”

It had been the 2016 first-round draft pick’s first start since his rookie season, when he stepped in for an injured Trevor Siemian. He had recently worked back from a shoulder injury suffered in Week 3 of the preseason, a training camp in which he lost out a quarterback battle to Siemian.

But Lynch’s misfortune led to Siemian getting another shot under center for the Broncos, and one in which he didn’t waste.

In just more than a quarter Sunday, Siemian completed 11-of-21 passes for 149 yards and touchdowns. His 107.0 quarterback rating is second only to the 116.0 mark he put up in a blowout Week 2 win, 42-17 against the Dallas Cowboys.

Head coach Vance Joseph lauded Siemian, saying that despite it being a “hard time” for the young quarterback he was “totally locked in and engaged” in the week of practice leading up to Sunday’s game in Oakland.

The third-year pro started the season atop the quarterback depth chart but lost the role to Brock Osweiler after a Week 8 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs.

“He’s had a couple of weeks where he had to watch, even not dress last week, so I was very proud of Trevor, how he handled the week, and how he played tonight,” Joseph said. “That speaks to Trevor as a person.

Joseph did not indicate where he was leaning in terms of what quarterback might start next week on the road against the Miami Dolphins, saying the team would need to evaluate Lynch’s injury before making a decision.

“We’ll see about who plays quarterback next week. We’ve got a full week of work, so we’ll see. We’ll evaluate it,” Joseph said.

Both quarterbacks expressed an interest in playing next week, with Lynch answering a question on the subject with just one word: “Yes.”

Said Siemian, when asked the same question: “I want to play, but that’s out of my hands. My job, once I wasn’t playing, I just said whatever my next opportunity is that’s what I’m going to worry about and make most of it when the ball comes my way.”

Follow digital content producer Johnny Hart on Twitter: @JohnnyHart7.