Trevor Siemian and Paxton Lynch to share time in finale

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. -- Trevor Siemian or Paxton Lynch? The answer for Week 17 -- both.

Siemian will start against the Raiders, but Lynch will play at some point against the Raiders, although head coach Gary Kubiak declined to say when the rookie would enter the game.

"I think Trevor deserves the right to go back out there as a starter," Kubiak said. "He's done a lot of good things this year. He's a young player that needs to keep going."

It seems to be a decision that offers the best of both worlds. Siemian gets a chance to start and wash out the lingering aftertaste of his worst professional start before the offseason. Lynch gets more repetitions, which he still desperately needs after an up-and-down two and a half games of work, which included a 1-1 record as the starter and one win in relief at Tampa Bay in Week 4.

"Certainly they're both early in their careers, so they both need snaps," said Broncos offensive coordinator Rick Dennison. "They need to develop."

Siemian and Lynch will split practice repetitions.

"It's really not that big of a difference because you're always trying to prepare the second guy," Dennison said. "It could be the first play that the first guy goes out, so you're always trying to prepare everybody."

But what does that mean for next year? Changes on the offensive staff could throw everything into flux, but Siemian's late-season performance did not offer evidence that he was ready to be handed the keys without a competition next year.

As the Broncos took their Week 11 bye, Kubiak said that Siemian needed to play "big." For two starts, his numbers were "big," as he notched a pair 300-yard games with no interceptions. But the Broncos lost to both the Chiefs and Titans in those starts.

After that, Kubiak praised his play, but said Siemian needed to turn those numbers into wins.

"Trevor's numbers are excellent, (but) it's about winning," Kubiak said Dec. 12. "This game is about winning. His numbers were big in the game (against Tennessee), but he has to step up and make some of those plays at the end."

In the two weeks that followed, Siemian led the offense to just one touchdown -- on a 6-yard drive. And while there are other root causes, starting with the offensive line and struggling ground game -- when the Broncos needed Siemian to do more than manage the game, he came up short.

And that's why Sunday's game may not be the last time the Broncos' two young quarterbacks split repetitions. It may well be a preview of the offseason work to come.