The Denver Broncos’ backup quarterback battle is officially on, and Sean Payton isn’t treating it like anything special.
Jarrett Stidham and Sam Ehlinger are still in the mix behind starter Bo Nix as training camp gets underway, but Payton made clear Friday that the quarterback spot is just one of several jobs up for grabs.
“There’s a competition at all these spots," Payton told reporters on Friday following the official Day 1 of camp. "The guard position, quarterback position, tight end position.
They’re competing for playing time and reps. That’s why we don’t have a depth chart or anything like that.”
Stidham, who turns 30 next week, enters camp as the loose favorite to keep the job. He has the edge of familiarity, having been with Denver since Payton arrived in 2023, and he also stepped in for Nix during January’s AFC Championship loss to New England.
Ehlinger, who turns 28 in September, has given the Broncos a real challenger. He signed back with the team in free agency on a one-year, $2 million deal after serving as Denver’s emergency QB last season, and he’s earned steady praise from Payton.
“Just what he’s doing. He’s getting reps.
Stay the course," Payton said of Ehlinger in June. "Some of the things, some of his strengths, you don’t get to see.
They’re the spontaneous plays that get whistled out early that don’t get finished. I think he’s doing well with the system.”
This looks like a fight that could stretch through camp and the three-game preseason before Payton and the Broncos make their call on Nix’s top backup for 2026.
And with the staff watching every rep, the edge may come down to the small stuff. Payton pointed to Friday’s red-zone work as an example.
"Yesterday in the red zone, you get into a competitive period and you’re trying to make every play count," Payton said Friday of the quarterbacks. "There was a point where I mentioned, ‘Hey, train yourself to play it.’
An incompletion there is a good thing. There’s only one time in a game where you’ll say, ‘You have to go to the end zone,’ and that’s the got-to-have-it last play.
I think if you’re not careful, you’ll find yourself forcing it, so training yourself to be patient came up yesterday."
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