Trevor Siemian went 8-6 as a starter in 2016, his first year playing in the NFL. Basically, he was a rookie.

Broncos fans have mixed opinions on Siemian, ranging from high praise to wrathful scorn. As for new coach Vance Joseph, he believes Siemian doesn’t get enough credit for his performance last season.

“When you win nine games in the NFL, that’s tough to do with two rookie quarterbacks,” Joseph said Monday, according to the Denver Post‘s Nicki Jhabvala. “They won nine football games. We won 10 in Miami and made the playoffs. Two other games could have gone either either way, so [the Broncos] could have won 11.

“So I am very comfortable with Trevor. He’s a smart guy, he’s a leader, his teammates love him and they love playing for him. If he’s the guy, all good. If Paxton [Lynch] comes back and he plays better, all good. We’re excited about our quarterback future.”

Joseph emphasized that the team is fine at quarterback, with or without Tony Romo.

“We got two young guys, one’s a first-round pick and one’s played an awful lot. So going forward we’re in great shape, not just for next year. Moving forward for the next four or five years, we’re in great shape at quarterback. Everyone can’t say that. We can.”

Time will tell if Siemian is the team’s starter again this season.