Broncos OTA Takeaways: Jarrett Stidham's bomb gives him the edge over Bo Nix

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — The Denver Broncos‘ second week of OTAs is in the books.

The Broncos kept the same schedule for Week 2, holding practice on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. Once again, media was invited to watch the final practice of the week, which was about 2-1/2 hours. Much of the work, both in seven-on-sevens and full-team periods, was third-down drills.

Voluntary OTAs will continue for one more week. Then, the Broncos will hold a mandatory mini-camp. None of the practices are padded.

Here’s what we saw on Thursday…

The Quarterbacks

Jarrett Stidham shined on Thursday.

The 27-year-old quarterback had the play of the day for the second straight practice that media attended. On Thursday, that throw was a 55-yard touchdown to Marvin Mims Jr.

Mims ran a deep post that he rounded to move past JL Skinner, who was playing the deep middle of the field. Cornerback Tremon Smith tried to recover deep enough up the sideline to break up the pass—and from my angle about 10 feet from the catch, he looked like he would get there—but Stidham laid the ball perfectly out in front of Mims. The 22-year-old made the catch and ran the final five yards into the end zone.

If you were ranking the Broncos’ quarterbacks’ performances on Thursday, that throw would have been the separator between Stidham and rookie quarterback Bo Nix.

But both quarterbacks had very good days, and the separation was only because of that play.

Let’s wrap up the Stidham notes before we move on to Nix…

Stidham made two throws I didn’t love. The first came in seven-on-sevens, when the offense ran crossing routes and the receiver running left came free, but Stidham hit the receiver moving right for a very small gain. His reads on the play may have forced him to go right, and he still completed the pass, but there was probably more on the table.

The other throw was a drag route to David Sills V, who had a half step on Kris Abrams-Draine in man coverage. Stidham was pressured by a blitz and hit him in the feet.

That’s nit-picking, but that’s my point; it was a very clean day for Stidham.

He layered a third-down ball to Adam Trautman on the sideline to split zone coverage. He hit Sills and Lil’Jordan Humphrey on short balls over the middle. He found Michael Burton on a third-down checkdown and let him run to move the chains.

Stidham had a very clean day. Throw in the deep ball and it’s easy to give him an A.

Nix was nearly as sharp.

“He’s doing really well,” head coach Sean Payton said after practice. “He’s picking it up. There’s a lot that’s going in. He’s throwing the ball extremely well.”

Nix hit Michael Bandy on a corner route that converted a 3rd & 7. He hit Humphrey perfectly in stride on a crosser. He hit Nate Adkins on a drag for a first down. He split zone coverage on the sideline to convert a first down to Mims in front of Levi Wallace.

His mistakes were minor. He tried to get a ball to Mims on a quick hitch in seven-on-sevens, but Ja’Quan McMillian flew in for a pass breakup. He probably could have put another ball further out in front of Mims downfield, but Wallace was able to jump and break it up. Bandy gained a half step on Brandon Jones on a crossing route, but Nix was pressured by a blitz, and Bandy had to dive to attempt a catch.

Outside of the big play, Nix basically kept up with Stidham. The batting average was high, but he mostly hit singles.

Where Nix really shined was the eye test. This is less scientific, but Nix looked polished. He sensed pressure well and stepped up in the pocket while keeping his eyes downfield. He didn’t bail as quickly as he did in the first practice. The placement on his passes was better than last week’s practice, too.

I’d give Nix a B+ for his work on Thursday, and I’d say anything above a C- is a win for a rookie quarterback in his second week of practice.

There’s one important note about these quarterback reports: Nix played with the starting offense and against the starting defense, while Stidham played with and against the second-teamers. The Broncos are rotating their starting quarterbacks, with Stidham taking the Tuesdays, Zach Wilson taking the Wednesdays, and Nix taking the Thursdays. Media has been allowed to both Thursday practices, which means we’ve only seen Nix with the ones and Stidham with the twos.

Personally, this doesn’t change my perspective on the practice. The Broncos are rotating their starters at wide receiver, running back, tight end and center. Much of the defense is rotating, too. That means the difference between the starters and second-stringers isn’t as wide as you’d expect.

But we’ve only seen Wilson with the threes, and I think that’s a tough spot to be in.

Wilson didn’t have a great day, but he was under more duress than either of the other quarterbacks. Devon Key and Tanner McCalister both sacked him on free blitzes off the edge. A linebacker got him on a blitz up the middle, too. To make matters worse, Troy Franklin dropped a third-down ball on a short pass that would have moved the sticks.

Wilson looked best in seven-on-seven drills, where pressure isn’t a factor. He made a timely read on a curl-flat combo. He found a wide-open Lucas Krull for a dozen or so yards on the left sideline after a deep route cleared out space. He lofted a ball up the left sideline for Sills, who lept to make a grab over McMillian.

For the second of the two practices, Wilson graded out the worst of the Broncos’ quarterbacks, but he certainly didn’t get any help. I won’t jump to any conclusions until I see him with the first- or second-stringers, and I recommend you don’t either.

“Zach has done a good job,” Payton said. “He’s picked things up.”

The Absences

Wide receiver Courtland Sutton was not in attendance on Thursday. He hasn’t participated in voluntary workouts so far this offseason as he hopes for a new contract.

Defensive lineman John Franklin-Myers didn’t attend, either. According to Chris Tomasson of the Denver Gazette, Franklin-Myers participated earlier this week but left to coach his camp in Texas before Thursday’s practice.

Cornerback Riley Moss and tight end Greg Dulcich were in attendance but did not participate. Moss is dealing with a back spasm, which shouldn’t be a major. Dulcich is recovering from a hamstring injury and is expected back before training camp.

I didn’t see Caden Sterns on Thursday. He didn’t practice last week. I suspect he was around, but I never laid eyes on him. He certainly didn’t participate.

Running back Audric Estime was not in attendance. He left last Thursday’s practice with a tweaked knee and had it scoped. Payton said after practice that the news was all good, but he won’t be back on the field until the start of training camp.

Jonah Elliss

The star of the day was the Broncos’ rookie pass-rusher.

Jonah Elliss constantly found his way into the backfield. He was too quick for the Broncos’ tackles, especially when matched up against the second- and third-stringers.

And my two favorite plays were more brains than physical.

The first was some sort of read option or RPO, when Jarrett Stidham tried to take off and run to his left. Elliss exploded in from the opposite side of the field and ended the play before the ball got back to the line of scrimmage.

The second was a snuffed-out screen that doomed a 3rd & 11.

The other edge rushers made plays, too.

Baron Browning played two gaps on the right side of the line and bottled up a run for a loss. Ronnie Perkins had a sack.

The Defensive Line

Through two open practices, the Broncos’ defensive line has been their biggest strength.

Today, Angelo Blackson and Malcolm Roach made the big plays. Both big men had dominant wins from the middle of the trenches that blew up run plays before they began.

The exciting part is that the Broncos’ top dogs—Zach Allen and DJ Jones—have been quiet but steady. John Franklin-Myers hasn’t attended an open practice. You’d hope more is still to come.

The Broncos are getting great production from their depth linemen, which sets the floor for the group much higher than it was last season.

Ja’Quan’s Revenge

Last week, tight end Lucas Krull was the star of practice. His best play came against zone coverage when he lept and pulled in a ball over Ja’Quan McMillian on a crossing route.

History repeated itself this week… except McMillian came out on top.

McMillian made a clean, physical play to knock the ball out of Krull’s hands, drawing cheers from the defensive backs.

Outside of one play—a lobbed ball to David Sills that McMillian couldn’t quite reach—the third-year cornerback had a great day. He had the two best pass breakups of practice. He looks just as sharp as he did last season.

The Centers Rotate

Typically, media isn’t allowed to give details about things like who is playing with the starters, but since Payton said this today, it’s fair game: the Broncos are rotating their centers.

This shouldn’t come as a surprise, but the Broncos’ competition to man the middle is wide-open. Today was Alex Forsyth‘s opportunity to start.

“We knew when we drafted him, he was extremely intelligent,” Payton said. “We knew we were drafting a highly intelligent player, and you could see that in his film. I think it’s a trait, certainly, that helps at center.”

That intelligence is one reason he wanted to hear what Forsyth had to say about his college quarterback, Bo Nix, before the draft.

“I knew that I’d get a pretty intelligent answer, a responsible answer, a thoughtful answer,” Payton said. “He has high, high football IQ.”

The Flashes

— Safety JL Skinner punched a ball away from tight end Adam Trautman. This was the only turnover of the day.

— Kicker Wil Lutz struggled. We aren’t allowed to give stats, but you wouldn’t like the numbers if you could see them. The longest kicks he took were 53 yards, and the last one hit the upright. By the end of the drill, Payton was only a few steps away from his kicker, locked into what was next.

— You may have noticed by how many times he was mentioned above, but Marvin Mims Jr. is playing good ball. He looks ready to take a leap.

— Safety PJ Locke played two gaps well and stuffed a run. He’s played good ball in the two practices I’ve seen.

— Linebacker Alex Singleton has surprised me with his speed on a play in both practices. Today it was a 3rd & 4 swing pass that was stopped well short of the sticks.

— Second-year cornerback Art Green made the best pass breakup of the day last week, and he blew up a screen today. His size-speed combination makes him a potential special teams ace, and he’s setting himself up to make a push for a roster spot during training camp.

— Running back Jaleel McLaughlin looks fast. He can hit a special second gear. Javonte Williams also had a great jump cut today, which I saw as a positive sign in his recovery.

— Wide receiver Lil’Jordan Humphrey missed a block on a screen. I’m always shocked when he misses a block.

— Quinn Meinerz hits the blocking pads hard. Like, really hard. I could watch all day. He almost looks bigger than last year, too. He jumped from 320 pounds to 340 pounds before last season, which he said was a more natural weight for him, and he played the best ball of his career. Maybe I’m misremembering what he looked like in January, but I’m wondering if he’s creeping up toward 345.

Quinn Meinerz and the big boys 👀 pic.twitter.com/ycl3aLx9Ot

— Henry Chisholm (@HenryChisholm) May 30, 2024

— Payton listed a few topics for his afternoon meeting with his coaching staff today. First, target weights for each player as they enter training camp. Second, training camp structure… things like practice in the morning and walkthrough in the afternoon, or reversed? Third, they’re sharing ideas about playing East Coast games. Travelling east is notoriously difficult, so he’s curious how coaches who have experience on teams that were successful on such trips think that success can be replicated.

— This will come as no surprise, but Payton said the toughest positions to evaluate without pads are linebackers, linemen and running backs. Keep that in mind given the notes above. And maybe read more into defensive backs, receivers and quarterbacks, who he says are easier to evaluate.