Broncos' Jarrett Stidham: Key turnovers in AFCG loss
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Stidham completed 17 of 31 passes for 133 yards with one touchdown and one interception while adding four rushes for 23 yards in the Broncos' 10-7 loss to the Patriots in Sunday's AFC Championship Game. He also lost a fumble.
Getting the starting nod in place of Bo Nix (IR, ankle), Stidham set an encouraging tone early by leading a five-play, 59-yard drive on Denver's second possession that included a 52-yard completion to Marvin Mims and was capped off by a six-yard touchdown pass to Courtland Sutton. However, that would be the extent of Denver's points on the afternoon, with increasingly deteriorating weather in the second half playing a significant role. Stidham's two turnovers were also costly, as his fumble came at his own 14-yard line early in the third quarter and led to New England's only touchdown, while his interception on a deep throw to Mims shortly before the two-minute warning snuffed out the Broncos' final hope to tie the game. Considering he had to open the game already down a key receiver in Troy Franklin (hamstring) and then also lost Pat Bryant to a hamstring issue in the second quarter, Stidham did a solid job in his first taste of game action in anything other than a preseason setting since the 2023 regular season; however, the combination of the elements, the Patriots defense and perhaps some of his own rust helped lead to a narrow loss.
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Broncos' Jarrett Stidham: Taking over as starter
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Stidham will start in place of Bo Nix (ankle) in the AFC Championship Game, Cameron Wolfe of NFL Network reports.
Nix suffered a broken bone in his ankle in the final moments of Denver's divisional-round win over the Bills. He was able to finish the game, though his season is over. Stidham will now face either the Texans or the Patriots with a trip to the Super Bowl on the line. He appeared in only one game this season and has not attempted a pass during the campaign.
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Broncos' Jarrett Stidham: Staying in Denver
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Stidham and the Broncos agreed on a two-year, $12 million contract Sunday, Dianna Russini of The Athletic reports.
Stidham will stick around Denver after spending the last two seasons with the team, most recently operating as the top backup option behind Bo Nix in 2024. The 28-year-old did not attempt a pass this past season, and he'll likely remain the No. 2 option again in 2025.
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Broncos' Jarrett Stidham: Logs four rushes in 2024
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Stidham did not attempt a throw across four regular-season games in 2024 but did register four carries for five yards.
Stidham spent the entire 2024 campaign as the Broncos' backup quarterback after losing out to Bo Nix for the starting job during training camp. All of his appearances came in relief, and the most snaps he played (nine) was Week 18 against the Chiefs. Stidham is an unrestricted free agent and will likely serve as the QB2 wherever he ends up signing.
Stidham completed two of four passes for 28 yards in Sunday's 38-12 preseason win over the Cardinals.
The 28-year-old was under center for the Broncos' first possession and led them to pay dirt with a 10-play drive that was capped by a three-yard TD plunge by rookie running back Audric Estime. Stidham appears set as the top backup to 2024 12th overall pick Bo Nix at quarterback, although Zach Wilson's strong performance Sunday after taking over could cause the Denver coaching staff to at least consider a switch in the No. 2 spot.
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Broncos' Jarrett Stidham: Outplayed by Nix on Sunday
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Stidham started Sunday's 34-30 preseason win over the Colts and completed four of seven passes for 37 yards and one interception.
Stidham being the first quarterback in the game suggests he's in contention to win the starting job in the regular season after starting Denver's final two games in 2023, but he didn't do himself any favors with his performance Sunday. The 28-year-old quarterback failed to lead the offense to any points in two drives, and Stidham's final pass was picked off. Rookie 12th overall pick Bo Nix played the next five drives and produced 20 points, including a one-yard touchdown pass to Marvin Mims. Nix's arrow is pointing up in Denver's quarterback competition, but Stidham will have a chance to turn the tide in the next preseason game against the Packers, While Nix is expected to get the start, coach Sean Payton said Stidham will see more snaps next Sunday, per Chris Tomasson of the Denver Gazette.
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Broncos' Jarrett Stidham: Slated to start Sunday
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Coach Sean Payton announced Friday that Stidham will start Sunday's preseason opener against the Colts, Aric DiLalla of the Broncos' official site reports.
Per the report, Bo Nix will play after Stidham gets his reps Sunday, followed by Zach Wilson, with Nix potentially getting in some reps with the first-team offense. DiLalla adds that Nix is slated to start Denver's second preseason contest, against the Packers on Aug. 18. While Stidham's name is atop the Broncos' posted unofficial depth chart, that can be taken with a grain of salt, considering that Nix and the team's other rookie skill players are notably listed at the bottom. What's more relevant is that Stidham and Nix have largely split first-team practice reps since camp training began, according to Nick Kosmider of The Athletic. With that in mind, Parker Gabriel of the Denver Post suggests that Nix remains expected to push Stidham for the starting job by Week 1, adding that it would be a moderate surprise if the rookie first-rounder didn't end up getting the nod. For now, however, consider the competition a close one.
Stidham is listed as the No. 1 quarterback on the Broncos' first unofficial depth chart of the preseason Tuesday.
Stidham is currently in the lead of Denver's quarterback competition, per the team's first unofficial depth chart, with Zach Wilson listed as the No. 2 man and rookie first-round pick Bo Nix in the No. 3 spot. Preseason depth charts mean little, though, especially given the caveat that not a single rookie is listed higher than as a third-stringer. Competition for the Week 1 starter gig could stretch deep into the preseason for Stidham, Nix and Wilson. If coach Sean Payton opts for all three quarterbacks to get some action during Sunday's exhibition matchup against the Colts, one or two of those signal-callers could have an early opportunity to pull away from the pack.
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Broncos' Jarrett Stidham: Denver adds QB in Round 1
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Following the 2024 NFL Draft, Stidham is joined in the Broncos' QB room by newcomer Zach Wilson, along with No. 12 overall pick Bo Nix, Nick Kosmider of The Athletic reports.
After the Broncos released Russell Wilson last month, it was inevitable that they would add QB depth to join Stidham, who started Denver's final two contests last season. While Nix is no doubt being groomed as the team's future starter, it remains to be seen if he'll step into that role immediately. Until then, Stidham and Wilson will presumably both have an opportunity to compete for the No. 1 role, but neither veteran signal-caller profiles as a high-value fantasy option in either re-draft or dynasty formats.
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Broncos' Jarrett Stidham: Throws touchdown
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Stidham completed 20 of 34 passes for 272 yards, a touchdown and an interception in Sunday's 27-14 loss to the Raiders. He also rushed three times for two yards and recovered a fumble of his own.
Stidham found Jerry Jeudy for a 24-yard touchdown during the second quarter. In two games after becoming the Broncos' starter to end the season, Stidham completed 40 of 66 passes for 496 yards and two touchdowns versus one interception. Although he's currently under contract with Denver for the 2024 campaign, it will be surprising if the team doesn't add a starting-caliber quarterback in front of him this offseason.
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Broncos' Jarrett Stidham: Throws TD in win
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Stidham completed 20 of 32 pass attempts for 224 yards and a touchdown while gaining six yards on six rushing attempts in Sunday's 16-9 win over the Chargers.
Stidham made his first start for Denver on Sunday following the financial benching of Russell Wilson. The former performed well in place of the usual starter, completing nearly two-thirds of his passes without turning the ball over. Stidham's lone touchdown pass went to Lil'Jordan Humphrey, who took a short slant pass in the second quarter and performed a series of maneuvers that resulted in a 54-yard touchdown. It was a relatively quiet fantasy day for Stidham otherwise, and he is slated to start the Broncos' final game of the regular season against his former club, the Las Vegas Raiders.
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Broncos' Jarrett Stidham: Moving into starting role
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Stidham is slated to start Sunday's game against the Chargers, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports.
According to Rapoport, the 7-8 Broncos plan to hold Russell Wilson out for the remaining two games of the 2023 season in order to preserve financial flexibility this offseason. Stidham thus represents a fantasy option for those who had been considering using Wilson in Week 17 lineups, or who might otherwise scrambling for quarterback help down the stretch. Though he's been active for all 15 of Denver's games to date, Stidham has thus far taken just four offensive snaps while Wilson has been healthy all season. Stidham's last extended NFL action came late in the 2022 season, when he made two starts for the Raiders and completed 45 of 70 pass attempts (64.3 percent) for 584 yards (8.4 YPA) and a 4:3 TD:INT to go with 84 yards on 14 carries.
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Broncos' Jarrett Stidham: Makes season debut
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Stidham played the Broncos' final four offensive snaps of Saturday's 42-17 loss to the Lions, attempting no passes during his time on the field.
Stidham handed the ball off four times after taking the field for the Broncos' last possession in place of starter Russell Wilson, who was held out for rest while the game's outcome was already decided. Up until exiting the contest, Wilson had played every offensive snap this season, so Saturday's game marked Stidham's 2023 and Broncos debuts.
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Raiders' Jarrett Stidham: Sleepers (Start/Sit)
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Stidham is dealing with an elbow injury, but hopefully he will be OK for this matchup with the Chiefs. He's coming off a tremendous game against the 49ers in Week 17 where he scored 31 Fantasy points with 365 yards, three touchdowns and two interceptions, along with 34 rushing yards. It's a great matchup for him in Week 18 against the Chiefs since Kansas City has allowed four of the past five opposing quarterbacks to score at least 22 Fantasy points. And for the season, the Chiefs allow opposing quarterbacks to score 22.7 Fantasy points per game on average.
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Raiders' Jarrett Stidham: Sleeper QBs
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Stidham is dealing with an elbow injury, but hopefully he will be OK for this matchup with the Chiefs. He's coming off a tremendous game against the 49ers in Week 17 where he scored 31 Fantasy points with 365 yards, three touchdowns and two interceptions, along with 34 rushing yards. It's a great matchup for him in Week 18 against the Chiefs since Kansas City has allowed four of the past five opposing quarterbacks to score at least 22 Fantasy points. And for the season, the Chiefs allow opposing quarterbacks to score 22.7 Fantasy points per game on average.
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Raiders' Jarrett Stidham: No limitations in practice
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Stidham (elbow) was a full practice participant Wednesday, Rachel Gossen of the Raiders' official site reports.
Stidham and wideout Davante Adams (illness) both returned to full participation and will thus lead the Raiders' passing attack this Saturday against the Chiefs. It's a game with playoff implications for only one side, but there are a slew of personal milestones in play for Adams and running back Josh Jacobs, the league leaders in receiving touchdowns and rushing yards, respectively. Stidham was able to keep both players busy in last week's 37-34 overtime loss to the 49ers, finishing the day with 365 passing yards, three touchdowns and two interceptions while carrying seven times or 34 yards.
Stidham played remarkably well against a very good 49ers defense in Week 17. In Week 18 he'll face a Chiefs defense that has allowed 12 different quarterbacks to score at least 20 Fantasy points this season.
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Raiders' Jarrett Stidham: Taking over starting job
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Stidham will replace Derek Carr as the Raiders' starting quarterback this Sunday against the 49ers, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports.
Stidham's first career start will come against one of the best defenses in the league, and under the guidance of a coaching staff that oversaw Carr's decline despite the offseason addition of wide receiver Davante Adams. Carr played much of the season without tight end Darren Waller and wideout Hunter Renfrow, both of whom should be available to Stidham over the final two weeks of the season. The 26-year-old was a fourth-round pick of New England in 2019 and has completed only 32 of 61 passes (52.5 percent) for 342 yards (5.6 YPA), two touchdowns and four interceptions in his NFL career.
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Patriots' Jarrett Stidham: Placed on reserve/PUP list
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The Patriots moved Stidham (back) to the reserve/PUP list Tuesday, Mike Reiss of ESPN.com reports.
Stidham will be inactive for the first six weeks of the season after being moved to the reserve/PUP list, leaving the Patriots with just one quarterback -- Mac Jones -- on their current roster. They will have to make a move to add a backup before Week 1, but Stidham should reclaim that role when he is healthy.
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Patriots' Jarrett Stidham: Undergoes surgery, out 12 weeks
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Stidham underwent surgery Wednesday for a back injury and is expected to miss around 12 weeks, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports.
Stidham was placed on the PUP list last week and it appears he'll continue to be saddled with the designation when the regular season rolls around. Even when he's cleared for action, Stidham ranks third, at best, on the Patriots' depth chart at quarterback behind Cam Newton and 2021 first-round pick Mac Jones, so his absence shouldn't have many fantasy ramifications.
