ENGLEWOOD, Colo. (AP) — The Denver Broncos completed their first week of OTAs Thursday with coach Sean Payton praising all three quarterbacks vying for the starting role and advising against drawing conclusions from the order in which they receive snaps.
“We try to distribute all the reps,” Payton explained. “There will come a time when the distribution matters, but I don’t think it’s early in OTAs.”
Jarrett Stidham holds the incumbent title, having started the last two games of the previous season. However, he faces competition from two first-round picks: rookie Bo Nix, the 12th overall selection and sixth quarterback chosen in last month’s draft, and Zach Wilson, the second overall pick in 2021 by the New York Jets, who was traded to Denver last month.
When asked about Nix’s progress, Payton commented, “He’s doing well, further along than most. We’re talking about a player who played 61 games in college. He’s very smart and has picked things up quickly.”
On Thursday, Nix worked with the first-team offense, following Stidham on Tuesday and Wilson on Wednesday.
Stidham has started four games over four NFL seasons with the Patriots, Raiders, and Broncos, serving as backup to Tom Brady, Derek Carr, and Russell Wilson.
“Having two new guys in the room, this is the first time I’ve been the veteran,” Stidham said. Otherwise, he stated, he is competing for a job as he has each year in the NFL.
Wilson went 12-21 as a starter in New York and became expendable with Aaron Rodgers’ return from a torn Achilles tendon suffered in last season’s opener. Wilson stated he is eager to play in Payton’s system, which he believes will bring out his best.
“They’re all racing to learn this system,” Payton said. “They’re doing well.”
Each quarterback stood out in different ways on Thursday: Stidham displayed an understanding of the offense fitting for someone with a year’s head start; Nix handled the pressure from pass rushers adeptly; and Wilson demonstrated his arm strength.
“They’re kind of like the orphan group,” Payton mused. “They’re all orphan dogs. They come from somewhere. But they’re doing well.”
Wilson, who owns two Siberian huskies, laughed at the comparison.
“We’ve all been through it, right? You can see why,” Wilson said. He acknowledged that he had faced challenges for three years but stated that those experiences made him stronger and that one just needs someone to believe in themself and you.
The Broncos have had 13 starting quarterbacks since Peyton Manning retired after Denver won Super Bowl 50 in 2016.
At a banquet honoring his community involvement on Wednesday evening, Manning praised Payton’s system as “extremely quarterback friendly,” one he said he would have liked to play in during his Hall of Fame career.
“It sounds like they have great competition over there,” Manning said. “That’s always good, it makes everybody better.”
Manning has a history with both Stidham and Nix, who as children participated in his family’s passing academy. Although he does not know Wilson well, Manning reached out to him when he joined the Broncos.
“It’s exciting,” Wilson said. “I grew up watching him and the way he plays the game, the way he attacks it every single day. And he’s a legend out here. So, hopefully I can spend a little time picking his brain.”
When asked about Nix, Manning mentioned exceptions like Rodgers and Patrick Mahomes, who spent time on the sideline before getting their chance to start, but he believes the quickest way for a rookie quarterback to get up to speed in the NFL is to face adversity right away.
That’s what Manning did in Indianapolis in 1998 when he threw 28 interceptions and endured a 3-13 season followed by a 13-3 campaign a year later.
Payton was asked about starting a rookie quarterback right away and said it depends on several factors, including how quickly the newcomer can learn the offense.
“I think some of it is a byproduct of what you have in the building,” Payton said. “If you have a starter in the building, that’s the path you go. If you don’t have that luxury, then that’s the path you go. A lot of it depends on the quarterback, his mental makeup.”
