With the starter sidelined, Stidham seizes a historic chance to join elite QBs who've led teams to Super Bowls following injury-induced opportunities.
Fans of the Denver Broncos aren't feeling as excited as they should be right now, considering they are just one win away from making the Super Bowl. It’s understandable, however, as they will be heading into the AFC Championship game against the New England Patriots without their starting quarterback, Bo Nix.
With Nix out due to a broken ankle, backup QB Jarrett Stidham will be under center for Denver as they look to advance to the Super Bowl. It’s certainly not a position the Broncos would choose to be in, but history shows there’s still some optimism to be had.
In his recent piece in The Athletic, Jordy Fee-Plat listed several backup quarterbacks who have helped their teams to Super Bowls following injuries to the starters. With some of the biggest names in football history on the list, Stidham has the opportunity to put himself on such a list in the future.
The most recent success story in such a circumstance was Nick Foles with the Philadelphia Eagles in 2017. After Carson Wentz tore his ACL, Foles led the Eagles to three straight playoff wins and a Super Bowl LII win against the greatest QB of all time, Tom Brady.
He earned himself an $88 million contract with the Jacksonville Jaguars shortly after, but made just 19 starts during the rest of his career. Still, Foles delivered when it mattered most, etching his name into Eagles and NFL history all because of an injury to the person in front of him.
Speaking of Brady, his real shot under center came as a result of an injury as well. After Drew Bledsoe went down early in the 2001 season, Brady stepped in and never looked back. He led the Patriots to an 11-3 record the rest of the regular season and all the way to the Super Bowl, which they ended up winning.
Other quarterbacks like Kurt Warner, Colin Kaepernick, Frank Reich, Jim Plunkett, Earl Morrall, and Jeff Hostetler got their shots at the No. 1 guy after an injury to the starters and made the most of the opportunity. Though it’s a big ask for a player who has thrown fewer than 200 passes in his NFL career, who is to say Stidham can’t surprise the football world and do enough to return Denver to the Super Bowl?