ENGLEWOOD, Colo. -- With the Broncos' top decision-maker, John Elway, having declared the quarterback competition "wide open," the team will get down to the business of choosing a starter when training-camp practices begin Thursday.
And to make that call, coach Gary Kubiak said Mark Sanchez, Trevor Siemian and rookie Paxton Lynch each will get an equal amount of playing time as camp gets underway.
"The bottom line is, we're going to give them equal reps and it's an open competition,'' Kubiak said. "We've got a plan ... so we'll get an equal look at all of them.''
Kubiak said that, initially, Sanchez will work with the starters and that Siemian will be the second quarterback in the rotation and Lynch the third. But he also said, "That will change on a day-to-day basis. ... We just want to give them all an equal opportunity."
Sanchez, who was acquired in a trade with the Philadelphia Eagles this offseason, and Siemian, a seventh-round draft pick in 2015, would get the bulk of the work with the starting offense.
In the wake of Peyton Manning's retirement and Brock Osweiler's departure to the Houston Texans in free agency, the quarterback question will be the biggest topic of football conversation throughout the preseason for the defending Super Bowl champions.
"I think it's going to be wide open," Elway said Wednesday. "We'll get to see how it's really going to take shape. ... We'll find our guy."
When the Broncos' offseason program concluded in June, Kubiak told all three quarterbacks how things would go in training camp.
"One thing we want to make sure is, every night we go up in that office and Mark had 75 throws that day, Trevor had 75 throws, Paxton, I want to be able to look at it that way,'' Kubiak said. "I want to be fair from that standpoint, because I think they all deserve the opportunity."
Kubiak said he has no timetable to make a decision. When asked what was the most important thing for the potential starter to show him, Kubiak noted that beyond getting the ball to the right people and limiting mistakes, he wanted to see a leader emerge.
"Who does the best job with the team?" Kubiak said. "I think there are a lot of things involved. We'll see. ... let's let them go to work."
Asked how deep into the preseason he would be willing to go to make a decision, Kubiak said, "I think they're going to tell me by how they perform and how they handle the football team.
"I know that they know they're on equal footing as far as reps and what's fixing to take place. They left here [in June] knowing that."