*No Trevor Siemian, no problem for the Denver Broncos (4-0), who saw Paxton Lynch lead them to beat the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (1-3) at a rain-soaked Raymond James Stadium, 27-7. *
- The Paxton Lynch era in Denver has begun ... kind of. After Trevor Siemian left the game with a shoulder injury late in the first half, the Broncos rookie quarterback took the reins and led three scoring drives in just over a half of work. Lynch threw sharp intermediate routes with pace and displayed his trademark rollout ability on his first career touchdown pass to Emmanuel Sanders. While he got to show off his rocket arm often, Lynch struggled with his deep ball accuracy. The first-round pick finished the evening with 170 yards and the win. Gary Kubiak always planned to get Lynch snaps this year, but if Siemian's injury is serious, then Lynch's development into Denver's starter will have to be accelerated.
- Jameis Winston's sophomore slump continues in Tampa. Winston threw two first-half interceptions to Aqib Talib, both of which translated into Broncos touchdowns, and never regained his confidence in the pocket. The second-year starter looked skittish against a vaunted Denver pass rush and was sacked five times. Winston is now second in the league in interceptions (8) and has alternated two strong performances with two terrible outings to start the season.Â
- It was a tale of two halves for the Tampa defensive line. The Bucs sacked Siemian four times in the first half, knocking him out of the game with a Clinton McDonald throwdown. Then, the injuries hit. With Robert Ayers already on the sidelines, Gerald McCoy and Noah Spence were both ruled out with calf and shoulder injuries, respectively. The Bucs failed to register a sack or pressure Lynch in the second half.
- Denver got Derek Wolfe at a bargain. The fierce defensive end earned a career-high 2.5 sacks and five QB hits on Winston and has now totaled four sacks on the season. All this for just over $9 million per year over four years. Wolfe's production in 2016 once again proves John Elway's acumen as a general manager.
- For the second week in a row, a Buccaneers home game was delayed due to inclement weather. Sunday's match was suspended with 6:52 left in the fourth quarter; the delay lasted for 86 minutes as a West Florida weather system moved through. The Bucs now have more weather delays than wins.
- Fun fact: Since the start of the 2015 season, the Broncos have as many quarterbacks as they have losses (4).
