The Russell Wilson era in Denver is all but over after Sean Payton benched the veteran quarterback for Jarrett Stidham on Wednesday.
Will the Stidham era last a mere two games, or could the former backup quarterback be Denver’s long-term answer at the position?
If it’s not Stidham, then who will be the Broncos’ starting quarterback in 2024?
The DNVR Broncos Crew breaks it down.
All odds below are courtesy of bet365.
Who will be the Broncos’ starting quarterback in 2024?
Zac: Jayden Daniels — Flip a coin for whether it’s Daniels or Michael Penix Jr, but the Broncos’ starting quarterback next year will be a rookie quarterback.
Sean Payton won’t just use a first-round pick on a rookie quarterback. He’ll trade up to ensure he lands his guy.
Caleb Williams and Drake Maye will be the first and second pick in the draft. Landing either of them would cost too much to move up and get. After that, however, the Broncos will be willing to make a big move to go and get Payton’s guy.
After the team moves on from Russell Wilson in the offseason, they won’t have cap space to spend a bunch of money on a quarterback. That means they’ll turn to the first round of the draft to pair with Jarrett Stidham.
Henry: Jarrett Stidham — At least in the beginning, No. 4 will be QB1 for the Broncos.
The Broncos will roll into the season with Stidham, Ben DiNucci and a rookie on the roster. While I understand why Broncos Country might expect Sean Payton to trade up and snag a top prospect—aggressiveness on the player personnel side is his hallmark—I wouldn’t be surprised if he finds a guy he likes outside of the first round.
Michael Penix Jr., J.J. McCarthy, Bo Nic, Quinn Ewers and Jordan Travis could all be available in the second round or later. Maybe the man Payton wants to stick his Broncos legacy to is one of the top three guys, or maybe he sees a better fit later on.
Regardless, I think Stidham will win out in training camp. He’ll have a head start in the offense and Payton has made it clear that he has high hopes for the former-fourth-round pick who’s only had two career starts.
RK: Michael Penix Jr. — With the massive hit to their cap caused by the eventual release of Russell Wilson, Sean Payton and the Denver Broncos need to find themselves a good quarterback for cheap. Well, there’s only one way to do that and that’s to find a guy in the draft.
The challenge for the Broncos is they likely won’t have a pick high enough to get in on Caleb Williams or Drake Maye—the expected top two picks—so barring a trade they will have to look to the second wave of quarterbacks.
The second wave includes Jayden Daniels, Michael Penix Jr. and Bo Nix, in that order as far as I’m concerned with where they’ll be taken. Looking at these three, only one of them is elite in an area that I believe Sean Payton values above all others and that is Michael Penix Jr. with his pinpoint accuracy.
It’s not hard to imagine Penix being a perfect match with Payton and if it weren’t for the fact that he’ll be 24 by the time training camp rolls around with multiple knee surgeries, I’m certain Penix would be in the conversation with Maye and Williams at the top. Because of Denver’s desperate situation, they may the perfect team to be willing to put those things aside and bet on Penix’s talent.
Picks Picks Picks
Jarrett Stidham passing yards over/under 199.5
Zac: Over.
Hank: Under.
RK: Over.
Jarrett Stidham passing touchdowns over/under 1.5
Zac: Over.
Hank: Under.
RK: Under.
Jarrett Stidham interceptions over/under 0.5
Zac: Over.
Hank: Over.
RK: Over.
Jarrett Stidham longest completed pass over/under 34.5 yards
Zac: Over.
Hank: Under.
RK: Under.
Jarrett Stidham rushing yards over/under 35.5
Zac: Over.
Hank: Under.
RK: Under.
Easton Stick passing yards over/under 211.5
Zac: Under.
Hank: Under.
RK: Under.
Javonte Williams rushing yards over/under 58.5
Zac: Over.
Hank: Under.
RK: Over.
Austin Ekeler rushing yards over/under 45.5
Zac: Over.
Hank: Under.
RK: Over.
Broncos-Chargers total points over/under 37.5
Zac: Over.
Hank: Under.
RK: Under.
Chargers @ Broncos (-3.5)
Zac: Broncos.
Hank: Chargers.
RK: Broncos.
Raiders @ Colts (-3.5)
Zac: Raiders.
Hank: Colts.
RK: Raiders.
Bengals @ Chiefs (-7)
Zac: Bengals.
Hank: Bengals.
RK: Bengals.
Leaderboard
Last Week
Hank: 8-3
Zac: 5-6
RK: 3-8
Overall
Hank: 108-83-5
Zac: 104-87-5
RK: 91-100-5
