ENGLEWOOD, Colo. – Last week, Denver Broncos general manager John Elway had heard much of the glowing analysis. How the starting offense was clicking and quarterback Case Keenum was progressing nicely and how members of the rookie class were dropping jaws. Yet in one brief moment on Wednesday, for whatever reason, he felt inclined to pump the brakes.

“The jury is still out,” Elway said of the Broncos’ seamless start to camp. “Yeah, camp has started out well. But we’re a young football team. Let’s just see how we progress.”

While Elway didn’t know it in the moment, he was wading into one of the least popular training camp storylines. NFL fans and analysts rarely want to embrace caution in August. It’s far less fulfilling than toasting great practice sessions or griping over preliminary depth charts that don’t matter that much. Early in the preseason, optimism or pessimism is king. The middling gray doesn’t play. Yet that measured approach is what Elway seemed to be suggesting last week, before the Broncos offense had a sputtering first preseason game against the Minnesota Vikings and fans took to social media white-knuckling.

View photos Case Keenum (L) has the No. 1 QB spot locked down in Denver, but things aren’t so clear for Paxton Lynch. (AP) More

“I don’t have to predict,” Elway said of the Broncos’ path forward. “You guys predict. I get to analyze where we are.”

As fans might have realized in an instructive preseason loss to the Vikings, that analysis is ongoing. A study is measuring all parts of the franchise, especially the offense, which is expected to finally get itself on track. But there is a lot of work to do here. A lot of tweaking and wrenching and tuning that can’t be adequately accomplished without some preseason failures. That reality includes everyone on the roster, from Keenum to the rookie class to an imperfect running back spot. And lest we forget, an offensive line that is still syncing up and a defense that is young in some very key spots.

As Elway said of the rookies: “There are a lot of walls left to hit.”

He might as well have been talking about the entire offense, which is not yet the finished product that everyone is hoping for. So here are some truths about Denver’s offense in these early stages (some of which Elway and the coaching staff will say out loud and some of which they won’t) …

Patience required for Case Keenum

Fans are going to have to be patient while the offense finds a groove. I know nobody wants to hear that after last season’s debacle, but it’s a reality. Despite the struggles against the Vikings, fans should know that everyone in the building is overjoyed to have Keenum in the fold. It has reinvigorated parts of the staff and roster that were frustrated by last season’s quarterback situation.

Head coach Vance Joseph put a fine point on it at one point, speaking to Yahoo Sports: “It was refreshing for all of us, from myself to John [Elway] to the veteran players, to know that we’ve got a guy in place. At quarterback, it’s obvious if you don’t have one that can operate and manage the game for you. It’s hard to win in this league [like that].”

On some level, all quarterbacks are timing and rhythm guys. That aspect is absolutely essential for his success. And it takes a solid amount of snaps – both in practice and real-game situations – to get into the groove. That’s the trade-off the Broncos made with Keenum. His arm is adequate. His size is doable out of a shotgun scheme. But his timing will make him worth the “show-me” contract that he signed, and may ultimately make him worth an extension next offseason.

Getting that timing down involves becoming familiar with a lot of the moving parts around him, then figuring out which parts of his game he has to accentuate (like pocket mobility) to maximize every play. Part of this can be done in practice. But the Broncos will have to expose Keenum and the starters to some failure in the preseason games to help that process along, too. Fans won’t always like that.

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