Jarrett Stidham hasn’t taken a real NFL snap in over two years. But this Sunday, he’s going to be thrust into the AFC Championship Game as a starter, and against the high-flying Patriots defense at that. It’s a wild turn of events, and Stidham’s Denver Broncos will now have to play a perfect game if they want to beat the New England Patriots and advance to Super Bowl LX.
Advertisement
According to his teammates, though, Stidham looks locked in for the game. The reigning DPOY, Patrick Surtain II, said recently that Stidham is a confident guy who has made some crazy throws in practice this season.
Two-time Pro Bowler Nik Bonitto echoed the same sentiments, praising the backup QB’s confidence, while also revealing that they call him “Stiddy.”
“Stiddy has got all of the confidence in the world, bro. Scout team, we’ll be going against that boy, and he’s throwing no-look passes. After that, he started talking [smack] to the defense and stuff… He be talking crazy. But I mean, that’s just who he is,” Bonitto shared on Closed on Sundays.
Stidham came into the NFL as a fourth-round pick out of Auburn. During his time in college, he balled out. In his sophomore season, he led the SEC in completions and completion percentage. So, he came into the league as a confident guy.
The team that drafted Stidham in the fourth round was none other than the Patriots in 2019. It’s going to be a full-circle moment for the QB on Sunday. He gets a chance at revenge against the team that kicked him to the side after 2020. That said, according to Bonitto, Stidham learned a lot from playing with Tom Brady and the Pats, and that has prepared him for moments like these.
“Learning from one of the best and being in a great organization like that, I feel like you can learn and soak in so much knowledge,” Bonitto said. “I feel like he has so much experience, and just being around so many great people and great players, it’s only going to be able to help him.”
It was only one season that Stidham got to play under Brady. He was a rookie who got to attempt just four passes. But he surely learned a lot from spending time around the GOAT.
It’ll be interesting to see if Stidham can tap into the self-confidence and tutelage he got from Brady on Sunday. Many fans were bummed upon initially hearing that the Broncos’ starter, Bo Nix, is out for the season. They believe the result of the AFC Championship Game is now a foregone conclusion, and that the Pats should have a walk in the park against Stidham.
But don’t be surprised if Stidham proves people wrong on Sunday. He’s only ever won one game in the NFL in four career starts. Yet his completion percentage was above 60% in those starts, and he’s thrown six TDs to four INTs. With an elite defense behind him, all he has to do against the Pats is take care of the ball and make a few key throws.
