Former first-round QB Lynch clinging to career
PITTSBURGH – He was handpicked by John Elway to be the Broncos’ next franchise quarterback, an athletic 6-7 passer with beguiling potential whom the team traded up to select in the 2016 NFL draft.
Then, a little more than two years later, Paxton Lynch was off the team – and, for the entirety of the 2018 season, out of football.
“It is what it is,” he told USA TODAY Sports. “Everybody has their own journey, you know?”
Most recently, that journey has brought Lynch to Pittsburgh, where the Steelers signed him to the practice squad in the wake of Ben Roethlisberger’s season-ending elbow injury last month, then promoted him to the active roster three weeks ago.
Now, as fellow 2016 draftees Jared Goff and Carson Wentz have become entrenched starters with nine-figure contracts, the 25-year-old Lynch is trying to prove he’s worthy of another chance in the NFL – and, by extension, disprove the “bust” label with which he’s been branded.
“Everybody’s going to have their own opinion, obviously,” Lynch said, when asked about being labeled a bust. “Social media nowadays kind of gives everybody an outlet to comment on what they want to comment on and be heard on what they want to be heard on, their opinions.
“I know what kind of player I can be. I know where I can get to. So it’s just keeping my head down and working, and then being able to show that whenever I get the opportunity.”
Lynch’s fall from potential franchise savior to practice squad (and then thirdstring) quarterback has been remarkably swift, in part because of his unusually brief tenure in Denver.
The Broncos cut the Memphis product last fall, prior to his third season, after he failed to beat out Trevor Siemian, Brock Osweiler and Case Keenum at various points over parts of two years. He threw for 792 yards, four touchdowns and four interceptions in just five regular-season appearances in Denver; since at least 2000, no first-round quarterback has played in fewer games before being cut by the team that drafted him.
“I would’ve obviously liked to have had more opportunities to play (in Denver),” Lynch said. “I feel like that’s good for everybody. Any young player, to develop, I feel like you’ve got to play those guys . ... But it just didn’t go that way.”
After being released last September, Lynch had workouts with 10 NFL teams but didn’t latch on with a team until January, when the Seahawks signed him to a future contract. He competed for the chance to back up Russell Wilson before suffering a concussion in the preseason and ultimately losing that battle to Geno Smith.
That’s where the Steelers came in. Offensive coordinator Randy Fichtner was on hand for Lynch’s pro day in 2016 and came away impressed with his arm strength and potential. So when Roethlisberger had elbow surgery and Lynch was available, the Steelers moved to take advantage of what Fichtner called “a unique opportunity” to see what the lanky quarterback could offer.
“Sometimes when you get drafted in the first round, there’s a certain expectation that gets put on top of you – that we’re going to roll the ball out and you’re going to be a franchise quarterback,” Fichtner said. “That may not happen overnight. It may not happen in your first contract.
“That doesn’t mean that it might not happen for you, if you keep your nose to the grind and you eventually hook on in that right fit, with that right team style, that right staff, that right system. You just never know.”
Now, Lynch is working to pick up what is his fourth offensive system in four years. The Steelers actually gave him some first-team repetitions during their recent bye week in an effort to evaluate him and gauge his understanding of the system.
In a weird way, Fichtner said, Lynch has become the grizzled veteran in a room that, without Roethlisberger, consists of second-year quarterback Mason Rudolph and undrafted rookie Devlin Hodges.
“I wonder what happened (in Denver) sometimes, but your past has nothing to do with your future,” added Steelers practice squad receiver Tevin Jones, who played with Lynch at Memphis. “The only thing I do know is that he’s a lot better now than he was before, from what I’ve seen. I’m just glad that he’s here.”
So is Lynch.
Though he never could have predicted that he would be here in Pittsburgh, on his third NFL team in four years, he said he is staying positive.
“Obviously my plan is not the plan that God has for my life right now,” Lynch said. “If I would’ve planned it out, I wish I would’ve been starting in Denver or still in Denver. But I’m not, so my journey is where I’m at. I’m supposed to be where I’m at right now.”