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DENVER, COLORADO – DECEMBER 21: Jarrett Stidham #8 of the Denver Broncos warms up prior to a game against the Jacksonville Jaguars at Empower Field At Mile High on December 21, 2025 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Justin Edmonds/Getty Images)
The Denver Broncos will take the field Sunday with a quarterback situation the NFL has quite literally never seen before.
After losing Bo Nix to a season-ending ankle injury late in the Divisional Round, Denver is turning to veteran backup Jarrett Stidham for the biggest game of the season.
In doing so, Stidham is set to make NFL history.
According to OptaSTATS, Stidham will become the first quarterback in league history to make his first start of a season in a conference championship game after not attempting a single pass during the regular season.
The Broncos were the only team in the NFL in 2025 and 2024 whose backup quarterback never attempted a pass, making Sunday’s moment as rare as it is high-stakes.
Stidham downplayed the significance earlier this week, keeping his focus squarely on the task at hand:
“What those guys have done and accomplished is incredible, but I’m not going to get too far ahead of myself,” Stidham said after practice.
“Just focused on the day-to-day right now and being prepared for Sunday.”
Stidham will make history on Sunday as he is thrown directly into the fire on the NFL’s biggest stage.
Everything to Know Ahead of Patriots-Broncos AFC Championship Game
The AFC Championship features two 14-3 teams, as the New England Patriots travel to Denver to face the Broncos with a trip to the Super Bowl on the line.
Despite identical regular-season records, New England enters the game as a 4.5-point road favorite, led by MVP candidate Drake Maye.
Denver, meanwhile, has won 14 of its last 15 games and earned home-field advantage in one of the league’s toughest environments.
But they will be without their leader and quarterback Bo Nix for the first time all season.
How to watch Patriots vs. Broncos
- TV: CBS
- Date: Sunday, Jan. 25
- Time: 1 p.m. MT / 2 p.m. CT
- Location: Empower Field at Mile High Stadium, Denver
Weather could also play a role, with forecasts calling for temperatures around 21 degrees and possible snow showers as the game progresses.
Jarrett Stidham Steps Into the Spotlight
While Stidham’s situation is unprecedented, he’s not the first backup quarterback asked to rise to the moment in the postseason.
Ten backup QBs have gone on to win Super Bowls, most recently Nick Foles in 2017.
Head coach Sean Payton has been careful to keep the focus off individual narratives.
“It’s a team game,” Payton said. “The key is how we prepare this week for the team we’re getting ready to play.”
Stidham is now in his seventh NFL season.
Drafted in the fourth round by the New England Patriots in 2019 out of Auburn, Stidham has appeared in nearly 20 regular-season games with only four career starts.
His most notable performance came in 2022 with the Raiders, when he threw for 365 yards and three touchdowns against the 49ers’ top-ranked defense.
After signing with Denver in 2023, Stidham started the final two games of that season following Russell Wilson’s benching and has remained a steady veteran presence in Sean Payton’s offense.
Today, he gets the opportunity of a lifetime with a chance to send Denver to the Super Bowl.
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