A day after Denver Broncos quarterback Bo Nix suffered a season-ending ankle injury, Head Coach Sean Payton expressed confidence in backup Jarrett Stidham as the team prepares for the AFC Championship Game.
“It’s our three years here and our three years watching him day in and day out that you guys don’t have access to,” Payton said of Stidham. “He will be ready to go and ready for the moment.”
Stidham has had limited practice time with the first-team offense, which is typical for backup quarterbacks in the NFL. However, Payton noted that Stidham has performed well during practices against Denver’s defense, which ranks third in scoring this season.
“One of Stiddy’s great strengths is his mental aptitude and his progression and understanding plays,” Payton said. “There would be practices where I’m looking at [Defensive Coordinator] Vance [Joseph] getting [mad], because Stiddy’s making our defense look bad. He’s very accurate. He’s got a lot to his ball.”
In preseason games, Stidham completed 30 of 38 passes for 376 yards, four touchdowns, and posted a 143.0 quarterback rating. He is currently in his third year working within Payton’s offensive system.
Payton also pointed to examples from NFL history where teams have succeeded without their starting quarterbacks. He referenced the 1990 New York Giants, the 2017 Philadelphia Eagles, and Teddy Bridgewater leading the New Orleans Saints to five consecutive wins when Drew Brees was injured in 2019. Additionally, he mentioned how this season’s Houston Texans won three games with reserve quarterback Davis Mills.
“Historically speaking, all bets weren’t off with [Giants QB Jeff] Hostetler, they weren’t off in Philly [with QB Nick Foles or] when we lost [Drew] Brees at midseason against the Rams and [Teddy] Bridgewater won five in a row. All bets can be off. They weren’t off for Houston this year when Mills came in. I don’t know if he lost a game.”
The Broncos will begin preparing their offensive plan for Stidham once they learn their opponent for next week’s championship game.
“I think the plan’s always got to be built around the type and the skill set of the players you’re playing with,” Payton said. “Are there certain things that Bo does differently than Stiddy? Absolutely. That’s where the work begins tonight.”
Wide receiver Marvin Mims Jr. recorded season highs in receptions and receiving yards during Saturday’s win, highlighted by a 26-yard touchdown catch on a play that was practiced earlier against teammate Pat Surtain II.
“It was a play we had run actually in our joint practice against the defense Friday and Saturday,” Payton said. “He ran that same route on Surtain, and when I say beat him… . It was a double move. We just hadn’t called that play in a while, and it looked so good in our joint practice, I’m like, ‘Man, that’s got to go to the call sheet.'”
Payton explained he showed Mims footage of that practice play before Saturday’s game: “I put the practice clip up, I was like, ‘You’re beating the No. 1 corner in the world. I don’t care who they put over there in the game tomorrow, we’re running this play,'” Payton said. “There’s a few times [where] I’ll say to the guys in the booth, ‘Guys, we can’t finish this game and me not having called that play.’ And that was one of those plays. We cannot finish this game with me not having called that play.”
The decision proved critical as it contributed significantly to Denver’s divisional round victory.
