Sean Payton is confident ahead of Sunday’s AFC championship game despite taking the field without starting quarterback Bo Nix.
The Broncos head coach sung the praises of backup Jarrett Stidham Wednesday as Denver prepares to face the New England Patriots. In fact, he expects Stidham to “rip it” against an aggressive Patriots defense that’s given C.J. Stroud and Justin Herbert fits in the first two rounds of the playoffs.
“That’s his personality. He’s going to rip it,” Payton told reporters of Stidham at his Wednesday news conference. “He has a calm demeanor that suits him well.”
In fact, Payton says that he believes that Stidham is a starting-level NFL quarterback.
If Stidham is a top-32 quarterback, Payton knows something that the rest of the league doesn’t. Stidham is a career backup who hasn’t thrown a pass since the 2023 season.
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It’s not all bad news for the Broncos
The good news for the Broncos is that Stidham won’t be going in completely cold. Stidham joined the Broncos as a free agent in 2023, Payton’s first season as Denver’s head coach. He’s been practicing in Payton’s system for three seasons.
The Broncos will be counting on that familiarity and comfort level with the Denver offense against a Patriots defense that sacked Herbert six times in the wild-card round and intercepted Stroud four times last week in the divisional round.
It would be a daunting task for Nix, much less a quarterback in Stidham who’s made four career NFL starts. And practice experience, obviously, doesn’t equate to a playoff atmosphere with a trip to the Super Bowl at stake.
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Stidham: It’s just another game
Stidham said on Wednesday that he’s taking the approach that it’s just another game.
“What I always go back to — in any game — regular season, preseason, AFC championship — it’s still the same game,” Stidham told reporters. “Obviously there’s implications — winner advances, and all that kind of stuff. But at the end of the day, it’s still football. And that’s how I view it.
“I’m not treating in any differently. I’m not treating my preparation any differently. I’m just gonna go out there and play and be myself.”
He sounds confident. And that’s certainly what you want to hear if you’re Payton or a Broncos fan.
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Broncos are built to win without elite QB play
And the Broncos have a team that doesn’t depend on high-level quarterback play to win. Denver earned the No. 1 seed the AFC on the strength of a defense that finished second in yards allowed and third in points allowed (18.3 per game) this season.
The offense was no slouch and finished in the top half of the league in yards and points per game (23.6). But the Broncos neither depended on nor got elite quarterback play from Nix. Nix’s passer rating (87.8) was below league average (91.4) and ranked 27th among quarterbacks who started eight games or more. His completion percentage (63.4%) and yards per attempt (6.43) both took a slight dip from his rookie campaign as he threw for 25 touchdowns and 11 interceptions.
DENVER , CO – JANUARY 4: Head coach Sean Payton of the Denver Broncos watches the action as he stands with Jarrett Stidham (8) and Bo Nix (10) during the first quarter against the Los Angeles Chargers at Empower Field at Mile High in Denver, Colorado on Sunday, January 4, 2026. (Photo by AAron Ontiveroz/The Denver Post)
(AAron Ontiveroz via Getty Images)
Nix’s best asset, arguably, was his late paly in close games. Thanks in part to not having an offense that pulled away from opponents, the Broncos found themselves repeatedly in tight games in the fourth quarter. More often than not, Nix found a way to make the plays the Broncos needed in those situations, including a late go-ahead touchdown pass against the Bills last week that ultimately forced overtime in Denver’s 33-30 divisional round win.
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Nix addressed that finish and his confidence in Stidham Wednesday in an Instagram post that included his first public comments since learning of the season-ending ankle injury at the end of the win over Buffalo.
“This is not how I imagined my season would come to and end, but our season has been defined by overcoming adversity and responding to it,” Nix wrote. “I can’t express how much this team and organization mean to me and how much I believe in them.
“I couldn’t be more proud of our guys. I couldn’t be more confident in Jarrett. And I couldn’t be more excited for what’s next.”
That confidence appears to exude from the Broncos practice facility despite Nix’s injury. But what matters is what that confidence looks like when the whistle blows on Sunday.