The 104.3 The Fan staff reacts to the Broncos release of Paxton Lynch

Sep 2, 2018, 2:25 PM Updated: 4:15 pm

With all hands on deck for the breaking news, the 104.3 The Fan staff sounded off with their takes of the end of the Paxton Lynch saga with the Denver Broncos.

After just more than two full seasons, the Denver Broncos moved on from 2016 first-round pick Paxton Lynch, announcing Sunday they’d waived the quarterback in favor of backup Kevin Hogan.

With all hands on deck for the breaking news, the 104.3 The Fan staff sounded off with their takes of the end of the Lynch saga in Denver.

Alfred Williams

“I’m glad the Broncos have done the right thing. The purpose of the backup quarterback role is to generate offense if the starter is not there. We just never saw the growth out of Paxton Lynch and because of that, he’s gone. If they can’t do that, then there’s no use for them.”

Mike Pritchard

“This had to happen. You can’t have that guy in your locker room. I don’t care how everyone tried to dress it up. You couldn’t. You had guys who lost their jobs yesterday who deserved to be on the roster. And to keep a guy who wasn’t going to get better? That just told me it was a matter of time before they made the move there.”

DMac

“It’s not a joyous day to see somebody lose their job. But it’s a monumental job in terms of the Denver Broncos … What an indictment of the situation where they were leading 24-0 in the third quarter and Gary Kubiak still didn’t play Paxton Lynch … You’re seeing a decision made by John Elway and Matt Russell that just didn’t jive with hardly anybody. It was a panic move and it was done out of more heart than head and it just bit them about as hard as it possibly can. You’re seeing a better draft class this year, there’s no doubt about it. You’re seeing a solid guy in the room like Kevin Hogan being brought in. We like Case Keenum. It’s a significant change.”

Mike Evans

“We closed a chapter on the biggest draft bust in the history of the Denver Broncos. That’s what this represents. I’m not exactly heartbroken. I’m excited that they recognized that they have to be in the quarterback development business and they went out and got Kevin Hogan, a fifth round pick, who fits into that quarterback developmental idea. I advocated the Broncos using a mid-round pick on a quarterback this year, and in many respects, that’s what they’ve done. With Hogan, you know that he’ll go about his business seriously, will put in the work. And I think that’s ultimately the epitaph on Paxton Lynch. Despite all the promise and potential, he just never did the things that a pro needs to do in order to show that he’s serious about being the next franchise quarterback of the Denver Broncos.”

Zach Bye

“In terms of quarterback busts in NFL history, when they re-do the top 20 list, Paxton Lynch will be on the list. He was never even given the opportunity to fail. JaMarcus Russell and Ryan Leaf started in five times more games than Paxton Lynch. Paxton Lynch started four games because the starter couldn’t play on that particular day. Four total games as a first round draft pick that John Elway moved up in the first round to get. To have the context of him being beat out under multiple seventh round picks under multiple coaching staffs, is so incredible glaring that Paxton will be known as one of the most classic busts.”
Cecil Lammey: “It’s a good move for the Denver Broncos. We all know that draft mistakes happen. The biggest mistake the Broncos could make now is hanging onto him and keeping him. So many people have gotten John Elway wrong about his ego. The Broncos didn’t make the mistake of keeping him around on the 53-man roster. It’s done. It’s over. It’s a reflection on the decisions being made at the top. One thing that’s really rare is that every first round quarterback gets a shot to be the man. Paxton never got that. It’s incredibly rare. It shows you how bad of a pick he was and how bad of a player he was to never earn that right.”

Mark Schlereth

“[The Broncos] did what they said they you were going to do. You have to look at this organization and if truly winning championships is the mantra you’re going by? Surely, Paxton Lynch was not one of the best 53. If you’re a first rounder and the perception is you didn’t work hard and you coasted and rested on what you had accomplished, the guys in the locker room hate that. And I think that’s where you suck energy as opposed to enhancing the energy of a football team. I just didn’t think you could keep him. This is probably the best thing that could’ve happen to the Broncos as an organization. It goes to show in the change of the philosophical approach the Broncos have shown in going back to the draft.”

Sandy Clough

“This is either the number one or number two biggest bust for the Broncos of all-time. I’m vacillating because Ted Gregory was such a total disaster. But to take nothing away from the value of the nose tackle position, a quarterback first round bust outweighs a nose tackle because of its impact over a period of years. This drafting of Paxton Lynch in the first round really set them back. We all know that they have never really drafted and developed a single quarterback in the almost-sixty year history of the franchise.”