Now wins and losses will count under the leadership of rookie quarterback Bo Nix
The Denver Broncos ended the preseason perfect, winning all three of their preseason games averaging 31 points a game. While the preseason isn’t much of a gauge for how the regular will fare, many believe that the Broncos have finally found their quarterback in Bo Nix.
Nix will be the first rookie quarterback to start the season with the Denver Broncos since John Elway’s rookie season with Denver in 1983. Nix impressed coach Payton along with various sports personalities across the country during the two first games of the preseason.
The Broncos now have the task of weeding out players, slimming down to the 53-man roster requirement. Along with quarterbacks, Denver has the good problem of deciding who they will keep from a corps of exceptionally talented players.
On Sunday, both Jarrett Stidham and Zach Wilson played in Denver’s 38-12 victory over the Arizona Cardinals. Stidham was 2 of 4 for 28 yards and no touchdowns. Wilson was the star of Sunday’s game where he looked like what the New York Jets expected him to be when he was drafted in 2021. Wilson was 16 of 25 for 251 yards, 2 touchdowns, with his longest connection being a 46-yard dart to Brandon Johnson for Denver’s last touchdown of the game.
It’s unclear at this point where coach Payton will land for backup to Nix, but Wilson definitely made his case for the second spot behind Nix. Both Wilson and Stidham had completely different reactions to coach Payton’s decision to start Nix in game one versus the Seattle Seahawks one week from this Sunday. Wilson praised the rookie for a hard fought offseason, while Stidham expressed disappointment with the decision making his case for being a starter in the NFL.
Denver’s wide receiver corps is bursting with talent and with names like Courtland Sutton, Tim Patrick, and Marvin Mims it’s hard to imagine where the bottom half of that corps will end up. Reports on Monday suggest that Denver may be cutting ties with veteran Tim Patrick who has missed the past two seasons due to injury.
Denver’s remaining talent at wide receiver is deep with rookie Troy Franklin, offseason acquisition, Josh Reynolds, Lil’ Jordan Humphrey and of course Brandon Johnson who made the amazing 43-yard catch in the end zone on Sunday. No official cuts have been made at the time of this writing but Denver has their work cut out for them when cutting down to a 53 man roster.
