‘I was excited about the opportunity’: Former NFLer Lynch arrives at Riders camp

After waiting to see what options awaited him, Paxton Lynch is ready to try and get back on the horse in the CFL.

The Denver Broncos’ first-round pick in 2016 made his Saskatchewan Roughriders training camp debut Monday.

“This season I didn’t have an opportunity to go to camp with a team in the NFL so I thought it would be better to come out here and have the opportunity to get out on the field and get on a team and play and practise with these guys rather than not be on a team,” Lynch said.

“I was excited to get up here. I heard a lot of good things about this team so I was excited about the opportunity and excited to jump on it.”

Lynch was taken by the Broncos with the 26th pick in the 2016 NFL draft after a successful college career with the Memphis Tigers. He once threw seven touchdowns in the first half in a 63-0 win over the SMU Mustangs.

“I don’t know what was going on that day but every time I threw a ball to a receiver, it seemed like they were in the end zone or running to the end zone after they caught it,” Lynch said.

But after just two seasons and a handful of starts with Denver, Lynch was released. After that, he made NFL stops with the Seattle Seahawks and Pittsburgh Steelers.

“They always say don’t take anything for granted. I’m not saying I took anything for granted but you never know what’s going to happen. You never know when that opportunity is going to come,” Lynch said.

“Just learning to be present in that situation and being the best version of yourself and each situation and each moment, I think that’s the best you can do for yourself and especially for your team.”

Even though Lynch didn’t live up to the expectations of a first-round pick, Riders offensive co-ordinator Jason Maas doesn’t think Lynch is a bust.

“He only had a few starts in the NFL and when I looked at it, he didn’t look all that bad to me,” Maas said. “You know he had the skill set to get drafted in the NFL in the first round. Now, down south is different football and having him come up here with the skill set he has and the work ethic he showed us as a coaching staff, I think those are steps in the right direction.”

After years on the Riders’ negotiation list, Lynch said the team gave him a call in October. He eventually signed a contract in June.

Lynch is a towering quarterback, coming in at 6-foot-7 and 245 pounds.

As he made his first tosses for the Riders, he said there are aspects of the Canadian game that are appealing to him.

“It is very exciting to come out here and see receivers be able to move around and run fast and get open. And this offence, I think, gives you an opportunity as a quarterback to spread the ball all over the field and throw the ball downfield so I’m excited about that,” Lynch said.

He said Maas took hours every day to help him get up to speed on all the technical terms and differences that come with the Canadian game.

“It has been difficult. A lot of the pre-snap stuff has been an adjustment for me. Really, when you break it down and get down to the core of it, it’s really football — it’s the same, just different terminology,” Lynch said. “I’m very thankful (Maas) did that and it has helped me a lot.”

He said coming to Canada, he has something to prove to himself and everyone who has supported him his entire life.

“I’m going to give it everything I have, work as hard as I can (and) do everything I possibly can to continue to play this game that I love,” Lynch said.

While he’s excited to be in Saskatchewan, he said he “absolutely” wants to return to the NFL.

“It’s always been my dream. As a kid, you dream of winning a Super Bowl and that fire inside of me to accomplish that is still there and it’s very strong and it hasn’t wavered at all,” Lynch said.

“I don’t want to get that confused with how I feel about being here because I’m very excited to be here. I’ve heard a lot of good things about this team, I’ve heard a lot of good things about this community and how much they love this team so I’m excited about the opportunity to be here and play here.”

Riders begin offence-vs.-defence drills

After taking the first two days to do only individual drills, the offence and defence went at it Monday in a 12-on-12 drill.

Things got heated between the trenches with members of the offensive and defensive lines getting into a skirmish during practice.

“I’m not surprised because (it’s the) first day of really going together and going in a team competitive environment so I think there was a little pushing and shoving,” head coach Craig Dickenson said.

“It’s one of those ones where it’s going to come and go, especially when you’ve got new guys and rookies and vets go against each other. It’s been slow for the first couple of days and then even a little bit of an amp up, everyone gets excited out there and you’ve got to be there for your guys,” said centre Dan Clark.

But there’s no hard feelings between the two groups.

“We’re like a bunch of little kids out there — one little scuffle and the next thing you know, we’re best friends walking out, sharing a conversation and laughing,” Clark said.

The quarterbacks also got a chance to finally throw against a defence on Monday.

“I thought Cody (Fajardo) looked sharp. What I really liked about Cody was that he seemed to have command of the offence. That tells me there’s a lot of teaching going on and that Cody’s doing a good job of absorbing and learning the offence,” Dickenson said.

Dickenson mentioned receiver Jake Harty, defensive back Christian Campbell and defensive end Keion Adams as players who impressed him on Monday.

Another training camp highlight was safety Jacob Dearborn coming away with the first interception of camp. Isaac Harker’s pass bounced off the hands of a receiver to the waiting Dearborn.