The Denver Broncos are making moves at quarterback again-and no, it’s not a headline-grabbing name like Cam Newton or Colin Kaepernick. This time, it’s Ben DiNucci, a familiar face in Denver’s orbit, who’s been signed to the practice squad following the injury to rookie QB Bo Nix.
DiNucci isn’t new to the NFL grind, even if his résumé doesn’t boast many starts. In fact, he’s made just one-back in 2020 with the Dallas Cowboys.
That outing didn’t end in a win, but it did give him a taste of what it means to lead an NFL offense under the lights. A seventh-round pick out of James Madison that same year, DiNucci’s path to the league has been anything but conventional.
Before JMU, DiNucci began his college career at Pitt, eventually transferring and finding success with Curt Cignetti’s Dukes. His NFL stat line is brief but not without value: 23 completions on 43 attempts for 219 yards, plus 22 yards on the ground across three appearances in that 2020 season. Those remain his only regular-season snaps to date.
Since then, DiNucci’s journey has been a winding one. He stayed with Dallas until August 2022, then landed in Denver in May 2023, where he spent the full season bouncing around the Broncos’ practice squad.
After a short stint with the Bills in the summer of 2024, he was cut, then briefly joined the Saints in the offseason before being released in April. His most recent stop came with the Falcons, where he spent five days in August before being let go.
Now, DiNucci is back in Denver, just ahead of the AFC Championship Game. He slots in as the emergency option behind Jarrett Stidham, who gets the start, and Sam Ehlinger, who’ll serve as the backup.
It’s not the kind of signing that dominates headlines, but in the NFL, depth matters-especially in January. And for a team still in the hunt, having a third quarterback with NFL snaps under his belt could prove to be more important than it seems.