ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — There are four words people should get used to hearing from Denver Broncos coach Sean Payton when asked about the team's three-man quarterback competition.
“We will keep you informed.”
It doesn't matter if the question is about practice, the plan for preseason games, overall progress or the timeline for deciding who will be the starter. Those four words will be Payton's answer, at least until he names the starting quarterback. Rookie Bo Nix, veteran Jarrett Stidham and recently acquired Zach Wilson all opened training camp this week and had the same opportunities as the starting offense.
How long that even split will last — or when the competition will shift from three quarterbacks to two (and from two to one) — is entirely up to Payton. But the clock is already ticking, as Payton has consistently said he just wants to “make the right decision” before the Broncos’ season opener in Seattle on Sept. 8. As camp began this week, Payton said all three quarterbacks understand how they will be evaluated and how their practice time, including reps with the starting offense, will be divided.
“We're on the same page, they don't know when they get out here,” Payton said.[They find out] In meetings, we set the week ahead of time, we talk to them and there's a great dialogue. It's important… there's a flow and an organization on how guys are going to get reps in camp from the beginning and that's starting to change as we get closer to preseason. They're very much on board.”
But Payton hinted Tuesday that he'll speed up the decision if either quarterback moves on. With that in mind, here's a look at what Nix, Stidham and Wilson bring to the game and how they can win the job.
Bo Nix
Because it is there?: Payton made it clear in his post-draft analysis that Nix was a priority when the Broncos selected him with the 12th pick in the 2024 draft. As general manager George Paton said after the draft, Nix “fits a lot of the things Sean likes in a quarterback.”
Payton has consistently praised Nix’s college experience (61 starts at Auburn and Oregon), his accuracy, maturity and his tendency (in college, at least) to avoid sacks. Sacks allowed were one of Payton’s biggest complaints about the Broncos’ offense last season, explaining why he benched Russell Wilson. Nix threw 45 touchdown passes and three interceptions last season at Oregon, while being sacked for just five times.
How Nix can win: Payton has said the rookie is “a quick study” when it comes to the playbook, and many personnel executives around the league believe Nix will be behind center when the Broncos play the Seahawks in Week 1. Making Nix the immediate QB1 starts the clock earlier for the offense's development.
Nix must look and act ready. He must master the details: getting the team in and out of the huddle smoothly, playing with an advantage and balancing avoiding mistakes that count against him and showing a willingness to get the ball into tight spaces to make the plays that matter.
And while Payton has never had a rookie start at quarterback in his head coaching career dating back to 2006, many around the league feel the coach has been positioning himself since draft day to make Nix his first.
Jarrett Stidham
Because it is there?: He was Payton’s choice, with a two-year, $10 million contract in free agency before the 2023 season, to be Russell Wilson’s backup. Stidham started the final two games of last season after Wilson was benched. The Broncos went 1-1 in those rather uninspiring games (scoring 16 and 14 points, respectively) as Stidham threw two touchdown passes with one interception.
Stidham has been coached hard throughout his career, having spent his first three seasons (2019-21) with the Patriots under Bill Belichick and playing with Payton last year, so he knows how this works. He also has a year's head start in Payton's offense.
How Stidham can win: It will be interesting to see how far Payton gets in the preseason before making a decision, as well as how much opportunity he gives Stidham and Wilson to score what many believe would have to be a knockout to keep Nix out of the job. But Stidham, who was the first to play with the starters in Wednesday's opening practice, has the most experience of the QBs in terms of seasons played. He can win the job with composure and reliability, but he must score touchdowns in the preseason when he plays with the starters.
In 2016, Trevor Siemian used that formula to win a three-team competition against a rookie first-round pick (Paxton Lynch) and a veteran former starter the Broncos had acquired in the offseason (Mark Sanchez). Siemian is also the last Broncos primary starter to finish a season with a winning record, going 8-6 in 2016.
Zach Wilson
Because it is there?: The Broncos believed enough in Wilson’s potential to spend weeks before the draft preparing to trade for him from the New York Jets. He has made the most NFL starts of the three (33 in three seasons), though most of them were frustrating and difficult. His 33.6 QBR ranks 35th among the 36 quarterbacks who have qualified since 2021.
Young quarterbacks like Wilson, who struggle after being inserted into the starting lineup, often face a confidence-building process and need to improve their mechanics. But Wilson has proven to have the most arm strength of the three in practice, which could be his biggest asset if he uses it wisely.
How Wilson can win: The second pick in the 2021 draft can prevail if he improves his decision-making and comfort level with some of the contact passes in the offense. Wilson showed his deeper side of the field than the other two in offseason work, but he also threw some reckless passes into traffic that raised eyebrows.
Defensive players often yell “check-down” at the quarterback when they think he's settled for too safe an option. Wilson's advantage in offseason workouts was his willingness to make more risk-reward throws down the field than Nix and Stidham.
The work he needs to do on his mechanics and footwork makes him a bit of an unlikely prospect, but Wilson's big-play potential could allow him to win the job.
