The Denver Broncos are gearing up for their most important home game in recent memory on Sunday. Denver will host New England in the AFC Championship with a trip to the Super Bowl on the line. The Broncos are unfortunately heading into this game with a major handicap. But they aren't letting it get them down.
Broncos QB Bo Nix suffered a season-ending ankle injury on the penultimate play of their Divisional Round upset against the Bills. Now Broncos backup Jarrett Stidham will be thrust into action in the most important game of his life.
Denver is rallying behind Stidham and has complete confidence that he can lead them to the Super Bowl.
Multiple Broncos players have declared that the entire team has faith in Stidham. Linebacker Alex Singleton made it clear that all of the hype reporters are hearing about Stidham from Broncos players is genuine.
“You’re getting genuine answers out of everybody,” Singleton said.
He also suggested that Stidham having an extra day to prepare will make all the difference. Singleton predicted the Broncos will make it to the Super Bowl.
“When things go the right way, he’ll have an extra week,” Singleton concluded.
That is all well and good from a morale standpoint. But the biggest question heading into Sunday's game is whether or not Stidham is talented enough to get the job done.
Will Stidham and the Broncos add another chapter to their fairytale season by punching their ticket to the Super Bowl? Or will the season come to an end in dramatic fashion at Mile High?
Below we will explore what Jarrett Stidham's stat line in this weekend's AFC Championship could look like.
What is Jarrett Stidham's track record as an NFL starter?
Stidham's resume as a backup quarterback is not as bad as many might assume. But it does not take away from the fact that he is a career backup.
The 29-year-old quarterback has a 1-3 record as a starter in the NFL. He started two games for the Raiders during the 2022 season and two games for the Broncos during the 2023 season.
Stidham was a capable starter in all of those contests. He never threw more interceptions than touchdowns and always maintained a passer rating of at least 76.0. It is a small sample size, but there are often times that multiple starting quarterbacks cannot make that same claim.
In total, Stidham went 85-of-136 for 1,080 passing yards with six touchdowns and four interceptions over those four games.
As for game results, Stidham's one win came by just one score. He also lost one game in overtime, but was handily defeated in the other two matchups.
But the Broncos have a great supporting cast around Stidham, as well as an excellent coaching staff. That should at least give Broncos fans enough hope that they could win against the Patriots.
Patriots defense won't mike life easy for Jarrett Stidham
But Sunday's game will be far from easy for Stidham and the Broncos. The main reason why is New England's swarming defense.
The Patriots had a statement win in the Divisional Round, absolutely demolishing CJ Stroud and the Texans' offense. New England forced five turnovers, sacked Stroud three times, and only allowed 241 total yards. Once they smelled blood in the water, they kept pressure on Stroud and never let up.
Broncos fans have to be worried about a similar fate for Stidham this weekend.
Thankfully Denver has an elite defense of their own. They led the league in sacks (68) and surpassed New England's defense in a few key metrics, including both yards and points allowed per game.
While Denver's defense will not do anything to protect Stidham, it could give him some breathing room.
If Stidham does struggle in a few moments, the Broncos can at least have faith that their defense could bail them out with a stop.
Jarrett Stidham will have keep pace with Drake Maye as a passer
Now that we understand this matchup better, let's dive into what Stidham's statistical output could look like.
This will be the most important game of Stidham's life, and I simply cannot believe Payton will not have him adequately prepared.
As a result, I can easily see Stidham going drive for drive with Patriots QB Drake Maye. I'm worried that Maye's rushing ability could give the Patriots a slight advantage. However, I think Stidham can keep up as a passer.
I'm predicting that Stidham will have at least 200 passing yards, two passing touchdowns, and a completion percentage of at least 60% during the AFC Championship. I also see him committing at least one turnover, be it an interception or a fumble.
If Stidham delivers that kind of performance, I believe he'll have done enough to give Denver a chance to win the game.
