Everything Broncos Fans Need to Know About New QB Starter Jarrett Stidham

Bo Nix is out for the season. Enter Jarrett Stidham.

Dec 14, 2025; Denver, Colorado, USA; Denver Broncos quarterback Bo Nix (10) and quarterback Jarrett Stidham (8) run out for player introductions prior to a game against the Green Bay Packers at Empower Field at Mile High. | Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images

The Denver Broncos advanced to the AFC Championship Game by defeating the Buffalo Bills in overtime 33-30. But it came at a devastating cost.

Broncos starting quarterback Bo Nix suffered a broken right ankle on the second-to-last play of the game and is done for the season. He's scheduled to undergo surgery to repair the ankle on Tuesday in Birmingham, AL.

The next man up? Jarrett Stidham.

"On the second-to-last play in overtime, Bo fractured a bone in his right ankle," head coach Sean Payton announced post-game from the stadium on Saturday evening. "He's scheduled to have surgery on Tuesday of this week, which will put him out for the season. 'Stiddy' is good to go."

While Broncos Country reels from the roller-coaster of emotions, Stidham steps into the limelight for what is set to be the biggest game for the franchise in a decade. The Broncos await the results of Sunday's Divisional Round game between the Houston Texans and New England Patriots to find out which team they'll host in the AFC Championship Game next week.

Stidham will be the Broncos' starting quarterback in that game. What do we know about Stidham? Let's go through a refresher.

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What to Know About Stidham

Oct 13, 2024; Denver, Colorado, USA; Denver Broncos quarterback Jarrett Stidham (8) warms up before the game against the Los Angeles Chargers at Empower Field at Mile High. | Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images

Stidham is a seventh-year pro out of Auburn. He joined the Broncos in 2023, signing a two-year deal to serve as Russell Wilson's backup.

Stidham started two games for the Broncos to end the 2023 season, going 1-1. He passed for 496 yards and two touchdowns in those two games, with one interception.

After the Broncos released Wilson, the team drafted Nix in the first round in April of 2024. From there, Stidham was pitted in an open competition with Nix for the starting job.

Nix won the competition, becoming the first Broncos rookie quarterback since John Elway in 1983 to be team's Week 1 starter. Stidham took it in stride, serving once again as the Broncos' backup, this time to Nix.

Nix would start all 17 games as a rookie in 2024. Stidham didn't see the field until garbage time in Week 18, after Nix had run up a 38-0 score vs. the Kansas City Chiefs.

In the 2025 offseason, the Broncos re-signed Stidham to a two-year, $12 million deal to remain the backup. With his second Broncos contract under his belt, Stidham played lights-out in the 2025 preseason, appearing in two games and passing for 376 yards and four touchdowns.

As a pro, Stidham has started four games since entering the league as a 2019 fourth-round pick of the Patriots. He's 1-3 as a starter in the NFL.

However, Stidham has now spent three years in Payton's system. He knows the playbook as well as Nix and he has some sneaky athleticism to his game.

At 6-foot-3 and 215 pounds, Stidham has some tools. There's a reason Payton brought him back to serve as his backup.

Nobody saw the Nix injury coming, especially when it did. He's started all 34 regular-season games since becoming the starter, plus two playoff games.

The Broncos kept Stidham around for a reason. The team's Super Bowl ambitions are still very much alive.

Destiny Awaits

Jan 5, 2025; Denver, Colorado, USA; Denver Broncos quarterback Jarrett Stidham (8) celebrates with quarterback Bo Nix (10) after a play in the fourth quarter against the Kansas City Chiefs at Empower Field at Mile High. | Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images

The Broncos just prevailed in a heavyweight slugfest with the Bills, and as the No. 1 seed, will host the AFC Championship Game. It would be all too easy for this team to go into a shell after losing its starting quarterback. That's not the Broncos' style, though.

Eight years ago, the Philadelphia Eagles suffered a similar setback when they lost starting quarterback Carson Wentz, after he'd delivered an MVP-caliber season and put the Eagles into the postseason.

The Eagles had to turn to their backup, Nick Foles. What ensued was one of the wildest postseason runs in NFL history, with the Eagles winning Super Bowl LII with Foles as the quarterback, defeating the Tom Brady-led Patriots. Foles was named the Super Bowl MVP.

After the shock of losing Nix burns off, the Broncos will look to repeat history and hope to win a Super Bowl with a backup quarterback. The 2025 Broncos just tied a single-season franchise record by winning 14 regular-season games, won the AFC West crown for the first time in a decade, and clinched No. 1 playoff seed in the conference.

The Broncos backed up their wild season with a hard-fought win against Josh Allen and the Bills. The Broncos have faced a mountain of adversity this season, and Nix has been the quarterback to help lead the team over one obstacle after another.

Tragically, Nix won't be on the field to finish what the Broncos started. Stidham will be entrusted with that privilege. And the Broncos will rally around him.

"This team, all year, has lost key players," Payton said after delivering the shocking Nix news. "And we'll rise up for the next challenge, and we'll go from there."