Boy, has it been a week for Broncos Country. I was struck with sadness and concern at losing Bo Nix to a freak injury that punched me in the face post-game after one of the most memorable playoff games I’ve seen the Broncos play (and I’ve seen a hell of a lot of them).
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Tim Jenkins, Chase Daniel review Jarrett Stidham film with Broncos
Denver Broncos quarterback Jarrett Stidham is preparing for the AFC Championship, and not a lot of people really know what to expect. That is why quarterback analysts and former NFL quarterbacks themselves, Tim Jenkins and Chase Daniel, broke down what film we do have of Stidham, and some clues as to what to expect on Sunday.
First up is Tim Jenkins. Jenkins admitted when he saw the Nix news, he thought the Broncos would become one-dimensional, because we haven’t seen Stidham move around the pocket. Jenkins was actually surprised by what he saw.
“We’re going to open up with what I can tell you jumped off the film most to me as I studied,” said Jenkins. “I was pleasantly surprised with his movement ability… I did think that was an area we’re going to lose without Bo… I love the movement.”
Jenkins went on to talk about Stidham’s movement inside the pocket, where he can create plays in a mess. You can view Jenkins’ full 26-minute breakdown below.
Now we turn our focus to Daniel. He begins his breakdown off the bat with a bold prediction. “Do the Broncos have a chance with Jarrett Stidham?” asked Daniel. “I think they do.”
Daniel is also of the opinion that the gameplan will remain unchanged, despite the change in quarterbacks. “Here’s one thing that’s never going to change,” said Daniel. “The Broncos will run their offense and nothing crazy is going to change.”
You can watch Daniel’s full 17-minute video below.
We will find out if Stidham is up to the task against the New England Patriots. Everything we have heard out of Dove Valley has exuded confidence in “Stiddy.” Kickoff (1:00 p.m. MT) can’t come fast enough.
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Keeler: Here’s why Broncos QB Jarrett Stidham makes Patriots fans in Denver nervous
Justin Grant had Tedy Bruschi on his back and Brock Osweiler on the brain.
“I don’t like the storyline with Jarrett Stidham,” he told me as we shivered on the second-floor deck at Jackson’s LODO early Saturday night.
Then he corrected himself.
“I hate the storyline,” Grant continued, adjusting his bright blue Bruschi replica Patriots jersey.
“Why?” I wondered.
“Because we drafted him. And he gave us two years and then he left. And now he’s, like, the guy who’s coming in. I just don’t like the storyline.”
New England rolls an MVP-caliber quarterback into Denver — only to get beaten by a Broncos backup? Justin’s seen the movie before. He always ends up crying at the end.
The last time Grant, who calls Colorado Springs home but grew up in Maine, saw his beloved Pats at Empower Field was November 2015. When Osweiler rallied the Broncos past Tom Brady in the snow.
Talk about your classic PTSD — Pats Traumatic Stress Disorder.
“I’m 0-and-1, man,” Grant laughed on the eve of the AFC Championship between the Broncos and Patriots. “We don’t have a good record here.”
Sure don’t. The Pats are tied with the Steelers for the most Super Bowl victories (six) since the AFL-NFL merger of 1970. But they’ve never won a postseason game in Denver (0-4). Brady went 0-3. Empower Field was the one mountain too high for even the GOAT to climb.
“Honestly, man, after losing two Super Bowls to Eli Manning and one to Nick Foles,” Grant’s friend Jordan Buck, a Pats fan from Lakewood, told me, “I’m not overlooking anybody. But you’ve got to be confident in your squad, so I like my team’s chances.”
Love them, though?
Not after Osweiler. Or Foles. Or Eli twice.
“Yeah, (Stidham) hasn’t played in a long time,” Buck shrugged. “But I mean, he played for us for three years, so he knows us well.”
What did Broncos fans and Pats fans have in common Saturday? Stidham, who’ll make his first postseason start against New England in place of injured Broncos QB Bo Nix, was on the lips of both teams’ fans the hours before the biggest football game at Empower Field in a decade.
New Englanders packed into Jackson’s LODO for a pep rally just within shouting distance of Coors Field. Most of the shouts were distinctly of the NC-17 variety.

“I LOVE DRAKE MAYE!” a Patriots fan cried.
“(EXPLETIVE) THE BRONCOS!” Another screamed.
The “Night Before” rally was a brainchild of the Pikes Peak Pats fan club. PPP typically hosts a night-before primer on the eve of an AFC title game in Denver, but it’s been a while. January 2016 brought roughly 700 Front Range Pats fans together. PPP president Anne Stone told me they were expecting at least 1,000 this time around — if not more. With the sun setting and temps falling at 5:15 p.m., a line of at least 100 patrons was seen snaking out from the front door of Jackson’s and around the block.
Near the DJ stage on the second floor, the Patriots’ “All-Access” television show did a live shoot for the locals back in Beantown. Pat Patriot danced in one corner. A giant ice sculpture of the New England logo rested in another. Former New England kicker Adam Vinatieri, the Patriots’ honorary captain for Sunday, showed up for his “All-Access” cameo as faithful waved tiny cardboard heads of New England rookie tackle Will Campbell.
“We all we got?” Vinatieri asked.
“We all we need!” they cried.
“We all we got?” Vinatieri repeated.
“We all we need!”
“That’s what I’m talking about!” Vinatieri said.

It’s OK to roll your eyes. But not at the cause. PPP ran a raffle during the rally on Saturday, with a plethora of signed Pats items, in order to raise money for the Pikes Peak Region Peace Officers Memorial.
As a Boston native, Stone’s accent is thicker than chowdah, bless her, with a laugh that lilts like a fly ball onto Lansdowne Street. She moved to the Front Range 30 years ago when her husband got a new gig — and never left.
The Pikes Peak Pats Club started in 2006. Stone became president a year after that. PPP counts about 90 active members now. Before the pandemic, it was closer to 400. Things are more transient now, with East Coast military transplants looking for a good watch pah-ty coming and going as Uncle Sam ships them in and out of the Springs.
“It’s good,” Stone said. “You get to meet new people all the time.”
Pats owner Robert Kraft has even visited PPP tailgates and parties over the years, although he wasn’t on the guest list for Saturday’s rally.
And if Stone’s got any PTSD, deep down, she sure as heck wasn’t showing it.
“To tell you the truth, in all honesty, I think a lot of people, all of my Pats friends, everyone’s hearts are broken for poor Bo Nix,” Stone said. “Some of us are old enough that he could be our son. Here was a 25-year-old who spent the night crying. It’s just awful.”
A pause.
And cue the “but” …
“That being said, I don’t think we’re a shoo-in,” Stone continued. “I do think we’re going to win. That’s my gut reaction. You know what they say: ‘Any given Sunday.’ It’s true. And we don’t have good luck (in Denver).”
Oh and four.
As in, uh-oh and four.
“That worry you?” I asked Grant.
“Yes, it does,” he replied. “It worries me a lot.”
He just wishes Stidham would stop giving him that old Osweiler vibe.
“So hopefully,” Grant said nervously, “history doesn’t repeat itself.”
Stiddy as you Bo, man. Stiddy as you Bo.
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Broncos vs Patriots: The ‘No Bull’ Keys to the game
I immediately took notice of how Sean Payton talked about it in his announcement press conference, and my attitude switched to hope.
I spent some time this week reviewing my past posts about Stidham to help give me a sense of what we can expect. I’ve been just as excited as all of you out there with the way this team and fanbase are rallying around Jarrett Stidham. Side note: I absolutely love the Stiddy Lebron meme that has taken us by storm on social media. I have no idea who started it, but I give a big hat tip to the creative mind behind it.
As the week has progressed, I’ve gotten settled into the idea that this game is going to be difficult. The Patriots are not a pushover. We’ve all called them cupcakes because of their schedule all season long, but they have proven time and time again that teams underestimate them at their own peril.
Here are the central keys to the Broncos coming out of this game with a victory and a Super Bowl appearance for the first time since 2015:
What the Broncos need most is a productive run game. That’s been an honest weakness. RJ Harvey isn’t nearly as impressive running the ball as he is catching passes out of the backfield or pass blocking. Jaleel McLaughlin is more productive, but doesn’t pass block as well, which tends to make the offense less dynamic when he’s in.
With J.K. Dobbins ruled out, the Broncos have to find a hot hand and produce ways to keep the offense on schedule. While I’d normally suggest an offense supplement this with a screen game, the Payton offense already does that each and every week. Heck, if Tyler Badie starts popping off, give him more touches.
If the Broncos do get the run churning early, look for it to open up the play-action deep shots we all love.
2) Take what the defense gives in the passing game

Jarrett Stidham is a smart quarterback. He’s been in this offense for three years, and that makes him well-suited to knowing what Payton is calling, why he is calling it, and where he should be going with the ball. Stidham needs to be patient and let the team get to work. He should only play hero ball at the end of the half and game when the impact of a turnover is minimized.

The secret sauce of this team all year long has been the offensive designs of Sean Payton and his staff. They absolutely will get the Pats in unfavorable situations. When those plays come up, Stiddy and the offense must execute. The wide receivers especially need to catch everything that hits their hands. The offense can’t afford the amount of drops we saw vs the Bills if they expect to win.

One big worry from the Bills game was the horrible run defense. The defense probably had its worst game of the season as far as stopping the run is concerned. The matchup of our pass defense vs the Pats pass offense is favorable to the Broncos. To get to that, you have to stop the run and keep them from gashing us for 5-10 yards per play. That’s easier said than done with quality runners like TreVeyon Henderson and Rhamondre Stevenson running the ball. The defense’s ability to stop the run could be the difference between victory or defeat.
2) Pressure Drake Maye smartly

One constant I’ve seen in the playoffs is that Maye will make mistakes if you pressure him. Vance Joseph and the defense need to do what they’ve been doing all year and mix in relentless pass rushing to get Maye to make mistakes.
The big problem they need to stay away from here is letting him have open lanes to run. He’s a very athletic, mobile quarterback who will gash this defense with his legs if given the opportunity. So pressure, but do it in the cage rush manner like what they employed against the Bills and Eagles.
3) Mix up the coverage looks

If people still think the Broncos are a man-coverage team, they either haven’t been watching the games or don’t know what they are talking about. They do such an excellent job of mixing up their coverage with disguise that is has caused a ton of problems (ask Josh Allen).
I expect wrinkles of all types in the coverage game, which could lead to big turnovers.
I’m cautiously optimistic about this game. The Broncos are at home. The crowd is going to impact the game. The altitude is going to impact the game. The world thinks this Broncos team is done. This team loves being doubted. We’ve heard it all season long, and they have responded in any way necessary to pull out a victory.
It isn’t going to be easy. Nothing is going to be handed to this team. They will have to go out there and take victory. They have to want it more than the Pats while being able to execute to the highest level of their abilities.
I’m seeing the right things from this team that I’ve seen from other teams in 1997, 1998, and 2015. One thing I can say is this team believes in each other moreso than any Broncos team I’ve seen. They can absolutely win this game. Let’s go, Bronocos Country!
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