Evans: Yeah, about this Paxton Lynch smear campaign …

I’ve been charged with a lot of things by our great listeners over the past 20 years, but I’ve got to admit this is a new one. I, along with Mark Schlereth, have been accused of conducting a smear campaign against Denver Broncos quarterback Paxton Lynch.

Apparently, I have it “in” for Lynch, I want to see him fail, I’m a Trevor Siemian apologist, etc.

Let’s start with the Siemian angle first.

Conveniently forgotten by the overwhelming majority of my accusers is I have labeled Siemian a below-average quarterback. That, of course, is based on the evidence that a Siemian-led offense ranked 27th in the NFL last season in total offense and 22nd in points scored.

Calling a guy below average isn’t exactly crawling into his back pocket, is it?

I do believe Siemian can be a good starter in this league. He did play with a bum shoulder last season, along with a terrible offensive line and a past-its-expiration-date offense — all, by the way, as a first year starter. There is enough out there to believe Siemian’s arrow is pointing up.

Which brings me to Lynch.

I’m not against the guy. Why would I want a young kid to fail? I’d love to see him have a great career with the Broncos.

I only want whatever he gets here to be earned.

Earn the starting job. Do the things that go into winning a job. Don’t expect it to be handed to you because you were a first-round draft pick.

I don’t have a beef with Lynch has much as I have a beef with his supporters. They want him to be crowned the guy just because he was a first-round pick.

If he was drafted that high then he just has to play, right? Or, because Siemian doesn’t impress them, Lynch has to play just because Siemian isn’t good enough.

Those can’t be the reasons why a guy wins the job. It has to be earned. He has to prove he’s better than Siemian.

This is the part that amuses me about the Lynch supporters. If he really is going to be that good, if he’s really that legit and Siemian really isn’t anything special, then Lynch will win the job easily.

It won’t even be close.

So what are Lynch fans worried about? Why are they afraid of a competition? Why do they want their guy to just be given the job?

Also, apparently pointing out certain logical flaws in Lynch’s game also can get you accused of conducting a smear campaign.

I’ve said Lynch isn’t ready. He’s raw. He has a lot to learn. What’s wrong with saying that? Every draft analyst and former NFL quarterback said Lynch was a bit of a project. It would take at least a couple of years for him to be ready.

So when he struggles in his rookie season, showing a lot of the reasons why he was labeled a work in progress shouldn’t be a surprise. But to point that out is somehow dissing Lynch: Ridiculous.

The worst part of this whole Broncos quarterback debate? It’s been polarizing enough that it is has divided Broncos Country.

Instead of just finding the best guy to revive the dormant offense, it’s now, “Are you a Paxton fan or a Trevor fan?

If one guy plays well it becomes: “Gotcha. Ha, my guy is great. Your guy sucks.” Or if your guy struggles, you make excuses. If the other guy has a good day you try to find ways to find flaws in it.

I really don’t care who is the Broncos starting quarterback. All I care is it’s the best guy.

Open competition. Best man wins. Earn it. Regardless of draft position. Fix this offense.

That’s not a smear campaign.

That’s just common sense.