Klatt: Broncos fans ‘fall in love with wrong (QBs) constantly’

On Wednesday, “Schlereth & Evans” co-host Mark Schlereth made the case that Trevor Siemian hasn’t been given the credit he deserves in the Denver Broncos win Monday over the Los Angeles Chargers.

Schlereth said people “look at 220 yards and two TDs and an interception” and go into the narrative that the Broncos quarterback is “not special” and just a “game manager.”

“I thought the kid played exceptional football, and I think people are getting hung up on the seventh-rounder, journeyman guy, we’ve got our first-rounder,” Schlereth said. “… I don’t think they’ve given him credit.”

And Fox Sports football analyst Joel Klatt, who joined the show Wednesday, agreed, saying that Siemian played “really well,” which doesn’t really show up in his passing stats.

“I thought Denver’s ability to run it was virtually solely the responsibility of Trevor Siemian in which he handled it beautifully. His operation in the run game was terrific,” Klatt said.

“I thought he played really well in all of those situations. That’s what allowed Denver to dominate the game — they have quarterback play for a majority of that game,” he added.

But it’s that lack of faith from the Broncos faithful that’s indicative of a fan base that has “developed an allergy to quality quarterbacks” since Hall of Famer John Elway’s retirement, Klatt said.

“We’ve got to stop falling in love with the wrong guys and start falling in love with the right guys in Denver,” Klatt said.

Klatt said that talent, especially athletic talent, is “tantalizing” and gets people excited, and that it’s “human nature” for a fan base to pull for its backup — like Paxton Lynch — if their starter’s not historically great.

In Denver’s case, Schlereth’s co-host Mike Evans said he thinks there’s that mentality because Broncos Country “saw Elway for so long.”

“You saw his incredible skills,” Evans said. “So, when a guy like Jay Cutler comes along or a guy like Paxton Lynch comes along, you start to dream again that we’ve got that kind of guy.

“Look at the skills. Look at the talent. Look at the size. Look at the arm. Look at the mobility. We’re ready to catch lightning in a bottle again.”

But, Schlereth said, “talented is wasted on the talented.”

“What you didn’t see with Elway is intelligence. You saw the talent,” Schlereth said. “…That stuff is hard to see for the average fan. It’s hard to see for me. It’s hard to see for most guys who haven’t played quarterback.”

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