1 + 1 + 1 = 3. And three equals none. At least when it comes to splitting the reps with quarterbacks competing for the starting job. Broncos coach Sean Payton explained this week that Jarrett Stidham (Tuesday), Zach Wilson (Wednesday) and Bo Nix (Thursday) all worked with the first team.
“We’ll continue doing that right now,” Payton said.
Listening to the interview, it felt like there was a punchline coming rather than this being something Payton will actually do. There are reasons to divide the pie at practice. The calendar suggests that it makes sense. It is May, after all.
But an expiration date must arrive after the first exhibition game, if not sooner. This is not based on preference, but experience. Having covered a handful of American Idol quarterback auditions, I can attest that none paid dividends. And only once did it produce a winning record.
There was the 2016 derby between Trevor Siemian and Mark Sanchez. Sanchez entered as the favorite against Siemian, a lightly regarded Northwestern starter who acted as a sponge around Peyton Manning during his rookie season. Sanchez could not stop throwing interceptions to cornerback Lorenzo Doss in practice and a final pick in the last exhibition game doomed him. Not only did he not win the job, he lost his roster spot.
Siemian guided the defending champion Broncos to a 9-7 record, one win shy of a playoff berth after dreadful losses to Kansas City and at Tennessee.
In 2017, Siemian was pitted against Paxton Lynch. Lynch looked the part, but his career became a cliche, a cautionary tale of a team not doing its homework or accounting for the scheme fit. While Lynch struggled with basic concepts, Siemian excelled at winning the job, making “The Decision” an easy one. The Broncos, though, were terrible and delusional, their aging roster under new coach Vance Joseph spiraling to a 5-11 record, including an eight-game losing streak.
Then came 2021, Teddy Bridgewater v. Drew Lock. This proved the most divisive among Broncos Country. Vic Fangio, coaching for his job, wanted a veteran despite his daily promises of an “even-steven” competition. Many fans wanted patience shown in Lock, who revealed promise as a starter in 2020. The daily charting of the quarterbacks, the condescending press conferences of Pat Shurmur, it was pointless. Bridgewater claimed the job, won his first three games, then went 4-7 over his final 11. Fans turned on him after his effortless tackle on Eagles cornerback Darius Slay. Lock went winless in his three starts replacing the injured Bridgewater.
Following that season, my Twitter timeline needed a steel wool scrub down after months of serving as the net in volleys between the Drewthers and Teddy’s supporters.
And this is not a modern trend.
I covered the 1999 training camp following John Elway’s retirement. Bubby Brister was pegged as Elway’s heir as the Broncos sought a three-peat. His reign replacing the king lasted four exhibition games. Coach Mike Shanahan shocked his team, announcing that Brian Griese would start the opener. That was a competition in Shanahan’s mind only, not the traditional sense. It, too, backfired horribly, as the Broncos lost their first four games and finished 6-10.
Are you seeing a pattern?
Having two quarterbacks alternate is bad enough. Three? Are you kidding me? Here’s the issue: The starter does not get enough time with the No. 1s to prepare for the season, and players begin taking sides, unsure who to trust without a clear alpha on the depth chart. It is human nature. And given Stidham’s popularity in the locker room, Payton would be well-served not to let this decision linger.
Stidham is a terrific mentor, but not the future. Wilson is young enough that he could be, but the back of his football card reads a lot like the previous Wilson’s time in Denver. He takes too many sacks, commits too many turnovers and, in the case of last year, oversaw an offense that led the league in pre-snap penalties.
Everyone I have talked to says Nix is picking up things quickly. He is the reason for hope. I am not saying he gained a lot of experience in college, but I am pretty sure he played with Bo Jackson at Auburn and Dan Fouts at Oregon.
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Payton had a revealing, no make that an encouraging answer when asked about his philosophy of playing a rookie quarterback.
“I think some of it is a byproduct of what you have in the building. If you have a starter, then that’s the path you go. Then sometimes you don’t have that luxury, and then that’s the path you go. A lot of it is dependent on the quarterback, his mental makeup,” Payton said. “So I think it just varies.”
Veteran players struggle with the concept of potentially sacrificing a season to develop a prospect. But the Broncos are rebuilding whether they articulate it or not. They do not have a proven starter in the building. The stage is available for Nix.
All of this goes back to Payton. Owner Greg Penner chose him over Russell Wilson. Payton chose Nix. Now the onus is on him to make it work. One is not a lonely number. It’s the only number to provide the answer to the Broncos’ three-variable quarterback equation.
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