DENVER — Denver Broncos coach Sean Payton is convinced that backup quarterback Jarrett Stidham can double his number of NFL career wins when he takes Bo Nix’s place behind center in the AFC championship game against the visiting New England Patriots next weekend.
If he does, well, that’s two.
Although Stidham — 1-3 as a starter in six years as a pro — received a paucity of Denver’s practice snaps during the regular season, he did get some more work during the bye week after the Broncos earned the AFC’s No. 1 seed.
“There’d be practices where I’m looking at (defensive coordinator) Vance (Joseph) and getting (mad) because Stiddy’s making our defense look bad,” Payton said. “He’s very accurate. He’s got a lot to his ball.”
Losing a starting quarterback to injury — as the Broncos lost Nix to a broken ankle Saturday night as he led them to a 33-30 overtime win against the sixth-seeded Buffalo Bills in the divisional round of the playoffs — can devastate a team and short-circuit title hopes.
Payton points to many examples of teams that overcame similar adversity, such as when Jeff Hostetler famously stepped in as the starting quarterback for the New York Giants in December 1990 after Phil Simms broke his foot and led the team through the playoffs, culminating in a 20-19 win over the Buffalo Bills in Super Bowl XXV.
Or when Nick Foles took over behind center for the Philadelphia Eagles late in the 2017 season after Carson Wentz tore an ACL. Foles led the franchise to its first NFL title in the Super Bowl era, with the Eagles beating a New England team quarterbacked by Tom Brady for the championship.
“I understand where it’s coming from,” Payton said of the idea that losing a starting quarterback at this point is a death knell for any team, “but historically speaking, all bets weren’t off with Hostetler, they weren’t off in Philly, when we lost (Drew) Brees midseason against the Rams and (Teddy) Bridgewater won five in a row.
“All bets can be off. (But) they weren’t off for Houston this year when Davis Mills came in for (an injured C.J. Stroud) and I don’t know if he lost a game.”
Mills went 3-0 in three starts. Payton was the head coach of the New Orleans Saints when Brees got hurt in 2019 but Bridgewater helped them get rolling early in what would be a 13-3 regular season that led to a playoff berth.
Stidham will be the seventh NFL quarterback since starts began being tracked in 1950 to make his first start of a season in the playoffs, according to Sportradar. Frank Reich of the Bills is the only one to earn a win. Reich went 2-0 in place of an injured Jim Kelly in 1992, including a comeback from a 35-3 third-quarter deficit against the Houston Oilers, before Kelly returned for the AFC title game.
Stidham started two games for the Las Vegas Raiders in 2022, losing both, and two for Denver in 2023, when he replaced a benched Russell Wilson and beat the Los Angeles Chargers before losing to the Raiders. He hasn’t thrown a pass in a game since, though.
The playbook will certainly change for Stidham, who took just one snap this season, kneeling out a victory against the Dallas Cowboys in the eighth week.
“The plan’s always got to be built around the type and the skill sets of the players you’re playing with,” Payton said. “And so are there certain things that Bo does differently than Stiddy? Absolutely. And that’s where the work begins tonight.”
A fourth-round draft pick by New England out of Auburn in 2019, Stidham is largely an unknown commodity after appearing in just 20 games over six NFL seasons. Payton has long touted his backup QB as one who could easily start for many teams.
Payton said he targeted Stidham in the draft when he was in New Orleans and watched as Stidham built his resumé as Brady’s backup toward the end of his time with the Patriots.
“I know exactly how he was coached in New England, and then I know how (Josh) McDaniels felt about him when he brought him from New England to Vegas,” Payton said. “And then I know reports on how he played, and then we saw him play in real time.
“But ultimately … it’s our three years here, and our three years watching him day in and day out … And so he will be ready to go and ready for the moment.”
Nix will undergo surgery Tuesday in Birmingham, Alabama, but Payton demurred when asked if he had a sense of a recovery timeline or whether Nix would be back by training camp next summer.
“The surgeon gets his hands on the X-rays, and so we have enough information now for everyone,” Payton said, “and the focus is now on the next week’s game.”
Part of what made Payton’s postgame announcement about Nix’s injury so stunning was that the starter didn’t leave the game after driving Denver into range for the winning field goal for the Broncos’ first playoff victory since Super Bowl 50 a decade ago. He even spoke with CBS in a postgame interview in which he appeared eager to play in the conference title game.
When Wil Lutz trotted out for the game-winning field goal, Payton gave Nix a chest bump as he got to the sideline. Nix told him to be careful, saying his right ankle was really hurting. Payton figured it was just a sprain.
“I said you’ll be fine and I tapped him in the chest again,” Payton recounted. “I said just enjoy this field goal.”
The on-field jubilation filtered into a locker room celebration and Payton held his postgame news conference. When he returned to his office, general manager George Paton and Beau Lowery, the team’s vice president of player health and performance, solemnly showed him the X-ray.
Payton went right to find Nix, who was outside the locker room surrounded by family members and some teammates, including Stidham.
“And I just asked him how he was doing, are you hanging in there? And as I said to you guys last night, this is a strong-minded individual,” Payton said.
Payton is usually loathe to discuss injuries, such as those to receivers Troy Franklin (hamstring) and Pat Bryant (concussion) on Saturday. The veteran coach said he decided to return to the lectern an hour after the game to deliver the news of Nix’s injury because he didn’t want his players to hear it from a news outlet with the big scoop before they held their team meeting Monday morning.
“I would have liked to have talked to the team first,” Payton said, “but like half of the locker room had left.”