Strike 3: The old adage says if you have two quarterbacks, you really don’t have one. That’s not true for the Denver Broncos, who continue their almost decade-long search for “the guy” under center. As they have been since Hall of Famer Peyton Manning rode off into the sunset, they’re still accepting applicants at Dove Valley.
Two newbies have recently been added to what had become a painfully sparse QB waiting room. Are either of them the answer?
Denver spent a coveted first round pick on a QB that very few talent evaluators believed was worthy of the slot. In draft terms, it was called “a reach.” Then again, it’s only a reach if it doesn’t work.
There’s no guarantee that newly drafted Bo Nix will be the guy, or even start on opening day. It might be Nix, or it might be newly acquired Zach Wilson, the former No. 2 overall draft pick whom the Broncos got on the cheap in a trade with the New York Jets. Or it might be holdover Jarrett Stidham, no one truly knows.
And that should be a good thing. Just anointing someone without holding an open competition would be a drastic mistake.
Everyone in Broncos Country should understand that internal competition for starting jobs at every position is how great teams are built. And what’s going on at Dove Valley is a building project to be sure. After eight straight seasons of futile football, every single job on the roster should be open for competition, with quarterback at the top of that list. Competition could and should bring out the best in all three QB’s.
Nix arrives with a ton of collegiate experience – he may have taken more college snaps than anyone living or dead – and high praise for how he handles an offense and takes care of the football. That fits exactly with what control freak Sean Payton wants. Nix can be that robot that the head coach maneuvers around, executing the plays precisely the way the head coach drew them up. Nix doesn’t possess a powerful arm (which is the main reason NFL scouts were not all that high on him) but he’s very accurate and Payton will do everything he can to put him in the proper position to succeed.
Wilson – the Utah native and former BYU star who was a mile high out of his element in New York City – is hoping for a fresh start back in the forgotten time zone, free of the intense scrutiny of his on and off field doings while he was a member of the Jets. He also doesn’t have Aaron Rodgers casting a shadow over his every move. Wilson is the same age (24) as Nix, and having three years of professional experience (both good and bad) under his belt could give him a leg up on a rookie, right? Wilson has that big arm, but also that propensity to turn the ball over too much, which Payton hates of course.
Wilson will be entering the final year of his rookie contract with a lot to prove.
And speaking of having a lot to prove, there’s Stidham. He has experience with Payton’s offense, and an inexpensive contract to boot. Maybe he’ll be the safest choice coming out of the gate?
Clearly when a team spends a first round pick on a QB, they have big expectations. But if you’re the Broncos and you know it’s highly unlikely you’re going to break that long playoff drought this coming season, there’s no need to rush anything. Hold that open competition for the starting QB job. If Stidham performs the best in training camp, then he should start. If Wilson outperforms Nix in training camp, so be it. None of that would mean that Nix is a bust, just that he’s not ready. It would also mean you made an astute trade, and your depleted QB room suddenly isn’t a glaring weakness anymore. It’s probably fair to say that both Nix and Wilson have their best days ahead of them.
And if you’re the Broncos, that’d be a nice problem to have.
