QB · DEN
transaction
FA: Jarrett Stidham dropped
sleeper-tx-free_agent+5 stories · 30dSource unavailable
Drops: Jarrett Stidham
Jarrett Stidham
QB · DEN · 30 yrs · exp 7 · Auburn
Status
- Game status
- Active
News
Stories linked to this player — newest first.
QB · DEN
transaction
Waiver: Jarrett Stidham added, Riley Leonard dropped
sleeper-tx-waiver+5 stories · 30dSource unavailable
Adds: Jarrett Stidham. Drops: Riley Leonard
QB · DEN
analyst
Jarrett Stidham - Starting season as primary backup
sleeper-rotowire+5 stories · 30dSource unavailable
Coach Sean Payton said Wednesday that Stidham will be the Broncos' backup quarterback to begin the 2026 season, Zac Stevens of TheDNVR.com reports. Sam Ehlinger pushed Stidham during training camp for his spot on Denver's depth chart behind starter Bo Nix, and the team opted to keep three quarterbacks on its initial 53-man roster, but at least for now, Stidham is second in the pecking order. Unless Nix gets hurt at some point, neither Stidham nor Ehlinger would be expected to get any snaps in a reasonably-close game
QB · DEN
QB · DEN
analyst
Jarrett Stidham to be the Broncos' Backup QB
Denver Broncos quarterback Jarrett Stidham will open the 2026 season as the team's backup to starter Bo Nix, head coach Sean Payton told Zac Stevens of DNVR Sports. There was some speculation that Sam Ehlinger could push Stidham for the backup gig this summer in training camp, but the 30-year-old Stidham eventually won the job and will hold the clipboard for Nix and the Broncos' offense on the sideline. The former fourth-rounder by the New England Patriots in the 2019 NFL draft out of Auburn has only appeared in three regular-season games (two starts) in his three years in Denver, throwing for 496 yards, two touchdowns, and one interception. His biggest opportunity came in last year's postseason, when he had a chance to send the Broncos to the Super Bowl with a win over the New England Patriots in the AFC Championship. Stidham failed that test, throwing for 133 yards, one TD, and one pick, although conditions were nearly impossible for throwing the football in a second-half blizzard. If Nix goes down with another injury in 2026, Stidham will be the next man up at the all-important QB position in Colorado
QB · DEN
transaction
Waiver: Jarrett Stidham added, Joe Mixon dropped
sleeper-tx-waiver+5 stories · 30dSource unavailable
Adds: Jarrett Stidham. Drops: Joe Mixon
general
Bo Nix won't play Friday, but will play final two preseason games
The Broncos will play their starters 10-15 snaps in Friday night’s preseason opener against the Falcons. Those starters will not include quarterback Bo Nix. The game is on the artificial turf at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, and Nix is returning from a fractured right ankle. Nix will play in the second and third preseason games, coach Sean Payton said Wednesday. “If we were playing a game — you guys have watched practice — he would [play],” Payton said, via video from Romi Bean of CBS News Colorado. “ He wanted to play . He’ll play the next two weeks. “I think that was probably something that was already decided maybe like a month ago. But if we were playing a game, I would say he would play. You’d have to ask him, but I would say [he’d be] 100 percent.” Nix was injured in the Broncos’ divisional-round playoff victory over the Bills, and the AFC Championship Game was the first game he has missed for injury in his career. With Nix watching from the sideline, Jarrett Stidham and Sam Ehlinger will handle the quarterback duties against the Falcons as they compete for the backup job
analyst
Jarrett Stidham to play one half in preseason opener
by Ari Koslow | Broncos Correspondent | Wed, Aug 12th 2026, 5:03pm EDT Jarrett Stidham is expected to play one half in the Broncos preseason opener. ( MileHighReport on Twitter ) Fantasy Impact: Bo Nix is not expected to play. Stidham and Sam Ehlinger will both play one half as they compete for the backup job. Broncos QB Bo Nix will NOT play in the preseason opener vs. the Falcons, but will play in Week 2 and 3. The smart and correct move to not play him on the turf. Play at home at Mile High on a natural grass surface. Stidham and Ehlinger will both get a half each with the… More Jarrett Stidham : News , Rankings , Projections , Stats Add FantasyPros on Google
general
Bo Nix is eager for preseason action
Sean Payton said the Broncos will play some starters against the Falcons on Friday night. He has not decided whether Bo Nix will be one of those to see action in the team’s preseason opener. “We haven’t gone through the role yet,” Payton said, via Chris Tomasson of The Denver Gazette . “I’ll let you know when we go through the roles.” The game is on the artificial turf at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, which could keep Nix out until the second week of the preseason. Nix is ready, though. He has not played since the Broncos’ divisional-round playoff victory over the Bills when he fractured his right ankle. The AFC Championship Game was the first game Nix has missed for injury in his career. “I’m excited,” Nix said of playing in the preseason. “I think preseason’s always a great time to get back out there and get your feet wet a little bit and see defenses in a live situation before the first [regular-season] game.” Nix said he has “no idea” whether he will play Friday. Regardless, the Broncos are expected to use both Jarrett Stidham and Sam Ehlinger against the Falcons as they compete for the backup job
general
Which AFC teams will bounce back, and which playoff teams could fall off in 2026?
The 2025 AFC playoffs featured no Patrick Mahomes for the first time since 2017, no Lamar Jackson for the first time since 2022, the Jaguars for the first time since 2022, the Patriots one year after going 4-13 and Joe Burrow's continued absence. Yes, it was a roller-coaster year, and it got even wilder when the Broncos topped Josh Allen's Bills in overtime -- but not before losing Bo Nix to a fractured ankle. A week later, the Patriots slugged past Jarrett Stidham's Broncos 10-7, becoming the first team ever to make a Super Bowl one year after losing 13+ games. The NFL has taught us to expect the unexpected, but even 2025 was a bit much. Entering the season, four AFC teams had +2000 or shorter odds to win the Super Bowl. Three of those four didn't make the playoffs. On the other hand, the Patriots were one of the league's great success stories, and they weren't alone. The Jaguars were arguably the NFL's best team during the second half of the season. The Broncos were arguably the NFL's best team, period. The Texans have a Super Bowl-caliber defense. The Chargers have had 11-win seasons in each of their first two seasons under Jim Harbaugh. So what does the 2026 season have in store? Bounce-back campaigns? Sustained success for last year's pleasant surprises? Was 2025 the "new normal" or an anomaly? Here's the team-by-team breakdown. (NOTE: All odds via DraftKings ) 2025 record: 6-11, missed playoffs 2026 odds: -205 to make playoffs (seventh-shortest in NFL) | O/U 10.5 wins The Chiefs ' 6-11 record wasn't just the worst of the Mahomes era; it was also the worst of the Andy Reid era, which dates back to 2013. The biggest factor in the Chiefs' favor is Mahomes. He's expected to be ready to go in Week 1, and he is superb. Over the past two years -- Kansas City's offensive downturn relative to its previous spectacular heights -- he's still seventh in passing success rate and seventh in EPA per play. One of the biggest issues could be fixed this year. In the past two seasons, Chiefs running backs had 20 explosive rushes (12+ yards), the fewest in the NFL. No other team had fewer than 33. Kenneth Walker III had 22 last year alone, and now he's a Chief. He could revolutionize what's been a plodding ground game. That doesn't mean it will be a cure-all, though. The Chiefs still have major question marks at wide receiver. Defensively, there's been significant roster turnover. The Chiefs traded CB Trent McDuffie to the Rams and lost CB Jaylen Watson (Rams), LB Leo Chenal ( Commanders ), S Bryan Cook ( Bengals ) and several rotational pieces in free agency. No. 6 overall pick Mansoor Delane will fill one cornerback spot, but the secondary is largely worse, on paper. The best-case scenario is that Delane is a stud immediately, and a revamped defensive line ( Khyiris Tonga and rookies Peter Woods and R Mason Thomas surrounding star Chris Jones ) can cause havoc. On one hand, it's a bit of a reset, given the infusion of youth. On the other hand, the presence of Mahomes alone warrants playoff contender status at worst. In the end, we'll see a bit of both. Bounce back or bust: Slight bounce back with a return to the playoffs, but not quite to the top-tier Super Bowl contender status we've become used to. 2025 record: 8-9, missed playoffs 2026 odds: -390 to make playoffs (second-shortest in NFL) | O/U 11.5 wins Things feel very, very different in Baltimore, with John Harbaugh out and first-time coach Jesse Minter in. But change can be good, and it might be exactly what this team needs to get over the hump. Last year's 8-9 campaign can be chalked up to Jackson's injury woes, which began in Week 4. He simply wasn't close to himself, and it showed in 10.7% sack rate, second-worst in the NFL and by far the worst of his career. He was at just 4.6% in 2024. He also posted just 26.8 rushing yards per game, less than half of his 2024 average. Baltimore hopes new offensive coordinator Declan Doyle can bring out the best in Jackson, and [... truncated ...]
general
Sam Ehlinger pushing Jarrett Stidham for Broncos' backup job
Sam Ehlinger took the Broncos’ second-team snaps on Saturday, Mike Klis of 9News reports. Jarrett Stidham, the team’s backup to Bo Nix the past two seasons, was with the third team. “There was nothing remarkable or anything that we discussed in a meeting, so maybe they just unfolded where . . . I wouldn’t make anything into it,’’ Broncos head coach Sean Payton said, via Klis. It was the first time Ehlinger has run the No. 2 offense, though, when Nix is healthy. (Ehlinger was the backup to Stidham in the AFC Championship Game when Nix was out with an ankle injury.) Ehlinger had a chance to leave for Washington and Indianapolis last season — and perhaps a better chance at the No. 2 job — but remained on the Broncos’ practice squad. Now, it appears he will push Stidham for the backup job. “I think we just sold our program and the offense,’’ Payton said of keeping Ehlinger. “We could never promise anything other than [a chance to develop]. I would say this, we saw immediate growth, and I think you’d have to ask him, but I think he felt like, ‘I want to continue with this offense and continue where I’m going.’ I think he felt good about it to make that decision.”
general
Betting the Broncos in 2026: See how Denver's win total, Super Bowl odds are trending and our best bets
The 2025 Broncos were about as unassuming a No. 1 seed as you'll find, with many expecting at various points throughout the year that teams like the Chiefs and Ravens would finally shake off the cobwebs and take over the top of the conference, or a team like the Bills would run through the postseason. However, Denver topped Buffalo despite losing starting quarterback Bo Nix early in overtime, and then almost made it to the Super Bowl the following week with backup Jarrett Stidham in a close loss to the Patriots. While the offseason was relatively quiet, the Broncos did make one major move by acquiring receiver Jaylen Waddle to give their offense a boost. We're taking a look at everything you need to know before making Denver Broncos futures bets below, including odds, trends, 2026 schedule, offseason changes and more before sharing our preseason betting strategy for the team. Odds are via DraftKings. Fans interested in betting on NFL and Super Bowl futures should check out the latest DraftKings promo code . The market is treating the 2025 Broncos as somewhat of a fluke, with the 2026 version not only slightly favored to make the playoffs but sitting third in division odds behind the Chiefs and Chargers. Twelve teams have shorter odds than the Broncos to win the Super Bowl despite how close they came to making the title game last year. The Broncos have massively exceeded win total expectations in each of the last two years. However, those seasons have been mirror images of each other in the AFC, where the Broncos had the third-best point differential in the AFC and the best in their division in 2024 while barely making the playoffs as the No. 7 seed before posting the fifth-best point differential in the conference last year as the No. 1 seed. If you want to wager on NFL futures, you have to check out the latest FanDuel promo code . It's no surprise to see the Broncos with the best defense on a per-play basis, and the unit was elite against both the pass and run, finishing first per play against the former and third against the latter. The defense also had the top sack rate and red-zone success rate in the league. While the offense was average, it ranked just 25th in yards per pass play but also had the top sack rate on that side of the ball. The Broncos lost a few contributors but mostly decided to address those losses internally, starting with offensive coordinator where Davis Webb earns a promotion from passing game coordinator. The one exception was at receiver, where the Broncos traded their first-, third- and fourth-round picks this year for Waddle to give Nix a better set of weapons entering his third year. Before you wager on NFL or Super Bowl futures, head over to our BetMGM promo code to see a great offer. While the Broncos have to play a first-place schedule, they get a break with their Kansas City trip set for Week 1 as Patrick Mahomes races to make it back for Week 1 after tearing his ACL in December. The AFC East and NFC West brings several tough opponents mixed with a few games where the Broncos should be clear favorites against the Dolphins and Jets, which they'll play back-to-back in Weeks 13 and 14, as well as the Cardinals. Their non-common opponents also could be much worse with matchups against the Steelers, Jaguars and Panthers on tap. If you want to tail R.J. White and other SportsLine and CBS experts, check out the latest Caesars Sportsbook promo code . While the Broncos certainly overperformed a bit last year on their way to the No. 1 seed, this was still a strong team by all measures that has only gotten better heading into 2026 with Waddle joining the offense. It's possible Nix's ankle injury continues to be an issue once the season starts, but I generally have less concern for that type of injury than I do players coming back from ACL and Achilles tears. Plus, the roster around Nix is so strong that I could see a limited Nix or even Stidham having success. The schedule is particularly brut [... truncated ...]
analyst
Evan Engram Drawing Ample Targets Early in Training Camp
Zac Stevens of DNVR Sports reports that Denver Broncos tight end Evan Engram is having a day in training camp practice on Friday, as he's been targeted multiple times with multiple catches during team drills, including a 50-yard bomb from quarterback Jarrett Stidham. Stevens adds that Davis Webb as the team's new play-caller "seems to be benefiting him a ton." Stevens added that Engram can "definitely" be a big part of the offense this year. The Athletic's Nick Kosmider writes that Engram has been "the standout" during the team's first 11-on-11 period in camp. The 31-year-old veteran TE also had a strong showing during mandatory minicamp last month, perhaps setting himself up to be a sleeper at the position in fantasy football drafts in 2026. Engram was a disappointment last year in his first year in Denver after head coach Sean Payton talked him up all offseason, ultimately finishing with a 50-461-1 line in 16 regular-season games. The Broncos have receiver Jaylen Waddle now, though, which could totally transform their offense and open up space for Engram to operate. RotoBaller has Engram ranked as only the TE34, but if he continues to impress during camp and gain the trust of Webb as a play-caller, his ADP could rise quickly as a TE2
general
Will Jarrett Stidham be the primary backup to Bo Nix in 2026?
Jarrett Stidham will battle against Sam Ehlinger to try and earn the backup quarterback position
general
7 positional battles to watch during Broncos Camp
One of the more interesting aspects of training camp each year is the positional battles ongoing throughout camp and into the preseason. We have seen multiple quarterback competitions happen during Broncos camp, but thankfully, Bo Nix has that job locked down for the foreseeable future. However, the Broncos will have multiple camp battles happening this summer that could greatly impact how this team looks come Week 1. While the Broncos starters are mostly locked and loaded for Week 1, there still will be plenty of competition for roles and even roster spots happening during camp. So, with all that said, here are the Denver Broncos positional battles I will be paying attention to during Broncos Camp. Veteran Jarrett Stidham has been Sean Payton’s backup since he was acquired and hired by the Broncos, but could his role be up for grabs this summer? Sam Ehlinger joined the team as the QB3 last season and quickly impressed the Broncos coaches on and off the field. Ehlinger re-signed with the team this offseason and, according to reports from OTA and minicamp, looked pretty good and may have even outplayed Stidham. Do I think Ehlinger can really take the QB2 role from Stidham? I have my doubts. Payton has spoken fondly of Stiddy in the past; he was Payton’s first free agent signing with the Broncos, and he knows the system well. With that said, his performance in the AFC Championship Game was, well, not great. In fairness to Stidham, the circumstances were not great for him, but you still hoped he would have played a little better than that. However, if Ehlinger outplays Stidham throughout camp, we could have a real conversation here. I will need to see it happen consistently for me to really believe this could happen, but we’ll have to wait and see. It certainly is possible. The Broncos are expected to enter Week 1 with veteran JK Dobbins, second-year back RJ Harvey , and rookie Jonah Coleman as their three running backs on the roster. All three backs are expected to have a role on this offense this season, but the exact details remain up in the air. Veteran JK Dobbins re-signed with the team after a successful 2025 season that was unfortunately cut short by injuries. Unfortunately, that has been the story of Dobbins’ career, and the Broncos have to be wary of his injury history. To his credit, he has bounced back and performed well despite multiple serious lower-body injuries, but the concern remains. He will be the Broncos’ starting running back this season, but could we see him share carries with a pair of young Broncos ball carriers? RJ Harvey had a mixed bag when it came to his rookie year. On a positive note, he had 12 total touchdowns last season, which is pretty damn good for a rookie running back. However, once Dobbins went down with an injury, Harvey struggled as the Broncos’ main ball carrier. Harvey averaged just 3.7 yards per carry but did look better as a receiver and in space, which was the role the team envisioned for him when he was drafted. I would anticipate he would have a similar role this season, but could he lose snaps to rookie Jonah Coleman? The real X-Factor here is rookie Jonah Coleman. The talented rookie back has three-down traits and could push for significant playing time his rookie year. He is a powerful and patient runner who can run between the tackles, catch passes out of the backfield, and probably most importantly, come in on third downs and be a pass blocker. If he were to have a strong camp and preseason, he could push for significant snaps early on this season. Sean Payton in the past has said it is difficult to manage a three-headed backfield, so it will be interesting to see how this plays out. All three backs will be on the team, but it will be interesting to see the pecking order come Week 1. Probably the most interesting positional battle to happen this summer during Broncos Camp will be the WR3 battle between Marvin Mims, Troy Franklin , and Pat Bryant . As we know, the team [... truncated ...]
general
Could Sam Ehlinger push for the Broncos backup quarterback job?
Sam Ehlinger, after spending time with the Colts and on the Broncos' practice squad, has re-signed with the Denver Broncos on a one-year deal. He showed promise in training camp and preseason, even being activated to the 53-man roster multiple times, and is reportedly close with the quarterback room and optimistic about the team's future. The question remains whether he can now push for the backup quarterback job
general
2026 New England Patriots Fantasy Preview: Is there WR1 upside for A.J. Brown with Drake Maye?
Well, Patriots haters had a good few years. New England owner Robert Kraft was quickly proven correct in jettisoning first-year coach Jerod Mayo for Mike Vrabel . The Patriots won 14 games, Drake Maye finished second in MVP voting, and they outlasted the AFC gauntlet of choking young quarterbacks and, somehow, Jarrett Stidham en route to yet another Super Bowl. Please don't ask what happened in the Super Bowl — they're still working on getting Josh McDaniels out of those chains Mike MacDonald threw on him. A pair of major stories have defined the Patriots offseason. One of them, their everlasting pursuit of A.J. Brown that finally resolved in the affirmative after June 1, makes them a much better football team on the field. The other one, Vrabel's affair with former The Athletic reporter Dianna Russini, is nothing but a red herring from a football perspective. (Well, probably, because a new video of them seems to drop every week.) Where does it leave the Patriots? Well, they look like a good bet to be a playoff team again. And from there, as they can tell you last year, anything can happen. 2026 Rotoworld Fantasy Football Team Previews Hub Get ready for 2026 fantasy football drafts with in-depth previews for all 32 teams throughout the summer. Rotoworld Staff , Points per game : 28.8 (2nd) Total yards per game : 379.4 (3rd) Plays per game : 61.4 (18th) Dropbacks per game : 38.3 (18th) Dropback EPA per play : 0.31 (1st) Designed rush attempts per game : 26.1 (15th) Rush EPA per play : -0.09 (25th) If you look at the fact that Brown is coming off the worst year of his Philadelphia career, he only cost a 2028 first-round pick, and he's entering his age-29 season on a new team, it's easy to create a compelling case to fade him. Let's poke some holes in that: He was available this cheaply because teams don’t love the medicals on his knee. It was the same reason that then-Titans GM Jon Robinson didn't extend him before Brown was traded to the Eagles in a move that, as far as we can tell, ended the entire Titans franchise. Brown's knee is worth keeping in mind — he has missed six games over the past two seasons — but I think it's more of a note for dynasty leaguers. His knee is healthy as far as things stand today. I'd be more worried about the new team if not for the fact that a) Maye is the quarterback here and b) Vrabel already coached Brown and knows exactly how to maximize his value. Brown is a YAC monster with the ball in his hands, and as long as you can deliver it to him over the middle, he's going to generate first downs. For whatever reason (*cough* Kevin Patullo *cough*) the Eagles seemed unable to generate that kind of play last year. Brown had just 52 targets on in-breaking routes and was invisible on play-action passes. I think his current ADP of around mid-third round is fair. He doesn't have a conclusive case to go ahead of any of the players ahead of him (maybe Nico Collins ), but I wouldn't be stunned if he wound up as a WR1 this year either. Remember: This team plays the Jets and Dolphins twice and they were more than happy to run up the score by throwing the rock around. There are going to be ceiling games in reach for Brown this season. QB: Drake Maye, Tommy DeVito WR: A.J. Brown, Kayshon Boutte (for now) WR: Mack Hollins , Kyle Williams WR: Romeo Doubs , DeMario Douglas TE: Hunter Henry , Eli Raridon There's always some inherent risk of an outlier season coming back to earth. Ask Jayden Daniels in 2025. Ask Dak Prescott in 2024. C.J. Stroud was QB9 in 2023. I don't think it's completely out of the realm of possibility that Maye fails to live up to high QB1 ADP just because a) it's his first year of that level of production and b) regression does come for us all. But I can't think of a reasonable reason why he would on paper. Maye's rushing production keeps his weekly floor high, and the running game has not improved in a real way unless Alijah Vera-Tucker is both healthy and ready to turn back [... truncated ...]
QB · DEN
analyst
Jarrett Stidham - Could face challenge for backup job
sleeper-rotowire+6 stories · 30dSource unavailable
Stidham could be pushed for the second spot on Denver's quarterback depth chart by Sam Ehlinger in training camp, Parker Gabriel of the Denver Post reports. Stidham remains the favorite to back up Bo Nix (ankle), but Ehlinger looked good in spring practices and could turn Denver's QB2 battle into a full-fledged competition if Ehlinger continues to impress during training camp and the preseason. Stidham hasn't thrown a regular-season pass since 2023, but he started Denver's AFC Championship Game loss to the Patriots this past year after Nix sustained a fractured ankle. Stidham's struggles in that game (133 passing yards, one touchdown pass and two crucial turnovers) may have helped open the door for Ehlinger to win the backup job in 2026
analyst
Jarrett Stidham Being Pushed for Backup QB Job?
Jarrett Stidham's backup QB job is being challenged by Sam Ehlinger in training camp and preseason
general
Brandin Cooks: I still feel like it was a catch
Yahoo Sports NFLSource ↗
In overtime of the divisional playoff game in Denver , Bills wide receiver Brandin Cooks had a catch in his hands at the Broncos ' 20-yard line that would have put Buffalo in range for the game-winning field goal and sent the Bills to the AFC Championship Game. But Denver's Ja’Quan McMillian ripped the ball out of Cooks' arms for an interception, and the Broncos kicked a game-winning field goal of their own on the next possession. Cooks still can't believe it. “For a week straight, I was watching it over and over ,” Cooks told Tim Graham of TheAthletic.com. “But I knew, as a father, that I had to put it away. If I’d have kept watching, it would have put me in some type of mood that my wife and my kids didn’t deserve.” The NFL has confirmed that the official's call of an interception was correct, but Cooks thinks he had possession and was down before McMillian got the ball from him. “I will continue to process it until I get back on the field,” Cooks said, “but I think the biggest thing I can say is that I still feel like it was a catch. After it happened, seeing some of the so-called controversial calls that were called a catch, I just had to turn the playoffs off because I’m like, ‘Yo, what is going on?’ For me, the way that my mind operates is, ‘OK, what can I do about it?’ And what I can do about it is get back on the field, continue to work on being the best that I can be and making sure next time it’s a catch-and-run for a touchdown and leave it in no one else’s hands.” If Cooks had completed the catch, the Bills would have spent the next week preparing to face the Patriots in the AFC Championship Game, not firing head coach Sean McDermott. The Bills might have gone to the Super Bowl, and Josh Allen certainly would have given the Patriots' defense a tougher test than Broncos backup quarterback Jarrett Stidham gave New England in the AFC Championship. And Broncos quarterback Bo Nix would have gone into the offseason healthy rather than spending the offseason rehabbing the broken ankle that he suffered just before the Broncos' game-winning field goal. These are thoughts Cooks has often. “It doesn’t keep me up or give me unhealthy flashbacks," Cooks said. "But from a competitive nature, I still think about not winning the Super Bowl as if it happened yesterday.”
Data comes from cached Sleeper and KTC snapshots. Values update when the sync jobs run.