The Denver Broncos lost in overtime to the Buffalo Bills despite winning the game.
The victory by the top seed in the American Football Conference playoffs sends Sean Payton’s team into the championship game next Sunday against Mike Vrabel’s New England Patriots. The loss was that their starting quarterback. Bo Nix suffered a broken bone in his ankle on the Broncos last series of downs in their overtime victory and he will miss the rest of the postseason.
His loss brings Jarrett Stidham into the starting role for the defensive strong Broncos. Stidham and Nix have two things in common; they both play for the Denver Broncos, and both spent some of their college career at Auburn University. Nix spent three seasons at Auburn before transferring to Oregon. Stidham began his collegiate career at Baylor before shifting to Auburn.
The similarities between these two field generals end there. While Nix guided the Broncos into the playoffs in his rookie season and the number one seed this year, Stidham has been a career backup since being drafted by the New England Patriots in the fourth round of the 2019 NFL draft.
After Tom Brady left the Patriots to join the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2020, Stidham thought he was in line to be the starter in New England. Those hopes were dashed when the Patriots acquired Cam Newton, who became the starter at the beginning of the Patriots decline. In 2022, Stidham was traded to the Las Vegas Raiders in a deal that gave the Patriots a sixth-round pick in exchange for a seventh-round draft selection and the quarterback.
Stidham made two starts for the Raiders in 2022, lost them both, and in 2023 was signed by the Broncos. That year, veteran Russell Wilson was the Broncos starter and while he struggled in the Mile High City Stidham got a pair of late season starts and split them.
So, does the injury to Nix blunt any chances the Broncos had to advance to Super Bowl LX?
In fact, when a team dominated by their defense prowess, like the Broncos, are faced with the loss of their starting quarterback the motivation for that team goes way up and their defensive talent can often compensate for the offensive liability at quarterback.
The only problem with that theory next Sunday is that they are facing a stout defense in the Patriots and a team that has overcome all obstacles this year. In his rookie season, quarterback Drake Maye was running an offense that notched only four wins in 17 decisions and finished in last place in the AFC East Division.
This year, with new head coach Mike Vrabel, the Patriots reversed their won/loss record to 14 wins and the second seed in the AFC playoffs. Maye went from a rookie on a last place team to a viable candidate for Most Valuable Player. The Patriots also accomplished something never done before in NFL history, they scored at least 23 points and allowed 23 or less points in ten straight games.
In professional football history only five other teams had accomplished that feat at least seven weeks in a row, none more than nine, and they all went on to win their league championship. The first two teams to do it were the 1949 Philadelphia Eagles and 1961 Houston Oilers, Philadelphia wan the National Football League Championship and Houston captured the American Football League Championship. In the Super Bowl era, it had been done three times before the Patriots did it this season. Those three Super Bowl winners were the 1984 San Francisco 49ers, 1999 St. Louis Rams and the 2024 Philadelphia Eagles.
Now the Patriots look to take the next step to make it six-for-six championships for teams that registered the 23/23 distinction. And they get their opportunity to advance to the Super Bowl against the Broncos backup quarterback in light of the Nix injury.
Could it be any easier?
The books installed the visitors 5½ point road favorites. The early action on this game sees the prospects of the Broncos at least keeping the game competitive with their quarterback liability and solid defense a viable option. The line has been cut a point and is currently posted with the Patriots favored by 4½ points.