After Denver’s impressive 33-30 OT win against the Buffalo Bills late on Saturday, January 17th, Denver coach Sean Payton announced that Bo Nix had fractured his ankle and would be out for the rest of the season. This injury occurred a few plays before the game-winning field goal in overtime. During a press conference after the game Payton was quoted saying,
“Nix is a tough cookie, I said, [to Nix] ‘Listen, I believe you’re the second quarterback in his second year to take his team to the conference championship game and the first is Patrick Mahomes.’” Snapping your ankle before the end of the playoffs is a terrible way to end such a tremendous season. Bo Nix had one of the more impressive seasons for a sophomore quarterback in NFL history, leading the Broncos to an impressive 14 and 3 record and getting the number one seed in the AFC. This season Nix had an impressive 3,931 yards, 25 touchdowns and 11 interceptions.
What does this mean for the Broncos going into the AFC Championship game? Backup quarterback Jarett Stidham will replace Nix for the rest of the season. Who is Jarett Stidham? Since joining the league in 2019 as a backup quarterback for the New England Patriots star quarterback Tom Brady, Stidham has only played twenty games in the NFL with four game starts. Stidham was supposed to be the new face of the Patriots before ultimately being passed up for veteran Cam Newton.
How might this help Denver in the playoffs? While losing the Star Quarterback is never a good thing, there are some benefits that can come out of the situation at hand. Backup quarterbacks have a slight advantage in the sense that they have very little to no game tape for the opposing teams to watch. Teams are unprepared for the strategy and strength of backup quarterbacks due to this factor. A backup quarterback is also fresher than a worn out star. This could benefit Denver in the sense that Stidham is rested and ready to play.
The Denver Broncos will ultimately not be at the peak of their strength going into the AFC championship against the New England Patriots, but hopefully they will not be counted out. Denver fans have high hopes for next season as news of Nix’s recovery continues to be covered.