Broncos Backup Quarterback Reclaims His Job Against Atlanta

The Denver Broncos had a battle for the backup quarterback job going into Friday night’s 27-7 win over the Atlanta Falcons, but Jarrett Stidham did his best to clap back on that narrative in his first half performance. 

Stidham went 9-for-15 for 131 yards and a touchdown as he carved up the Atlanta defense in a dominant performace, as he clearly outplayed third quarterback Sam Ehlinger. 

His performance didn’t make up for Stidham’s poor effort against the New England Patriots in the AFC Championship game in January, but it did draw praise from coach Sean Payton as he discussed Stidham in a piece written by Parker Gabriel of the Denver Post. 

“It wasn’t just a disappointment for him,” Payton said. “I was disappointed in myself. You lose a game like that, you go back and look at it closely. Margins in that game, yeah. One of his strengths is his resiliency and I think he’s got a little bit of that ‘it’ factor. He’s really good with the operation. Quick. … I thought he handled it well.”

Stidham hasn’t said much about that game or his status in training camp so far, and most of the focus has been on the health of starter Bo Nix. He let his performance speak for him on Friday, and that’s the way it’s supposed to be. 

“I feel like one of the things I try to hang my hat on is just putting my nose down and just working,” Stidham said. “Obviously, it didn’t go our way in the championship game, but it’s football. There has to be a winner and there has to be a loser. If you get knocked down, you’ve got to get right back to work and that’s what it was the entire offseason.”

The Broncos still have two more preseason games to play, and Nix will be back on the field in both of them, according to a tentative prediction from Payton. That will fade Stidham back to his standard role, but he knows he still has to outplay Ehlinger to keep his job. 

He’ll also keep working together with new offensive coordinator Davis Webb, who drew praise for getting plays in on time and running the operation “smoothly,” to use Payton’s description. Stidham said he was happy about the communication on Friday, so the Broncos will be looking for more of the same on Friday when Nix presumably gets his first game action against the Green Bay Packers this Friday.