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Denver Broncos keeping three quarterbacks on the roster is a genius move

This is a smart move

By Lou Scataglia

Jul 26, 2024; Englewood, CO, USA; Denver Broncos quarterback Bo Nix (10) and quarterback Jarrett Stidham (8) and quarterback Zach Wilson (4) during training camp at Broncos Park Powered by CommonSpirit. Mandatory Credit: Isaiah J. Downing-USA TODAY Sports
Jul 26, 2024; Englewood, CO, USA; Denver Broncos quarterback Bo Nix (10) and quarterback Jarrett Stidham (8) and quarterback Zach Wilson (4) during training camp at Broncos Park Powered by CommonSpirit. Mandatory Credit: Isaiah J. Downing-USA TODAY Sports / Isaiah J. Downing-USA TODAY Sports
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Some people have been a bit confused seeing the Denver Broncos rostering three quarterbacks, but it's actually a genius idea. If this trend holds, the Broncos could carry three QBs into the 2024 NFL Season. The team held a QB "competition" this offseason, and I put competition in quotes as I believe Bo Nix was going to start this entire time.

To me, you do not use the 12th overall pick on a 24-year-old rookie QB who has the most starts in college football history to not start him in year one. And to Nix's credit, he did play well and truly separated himself from Jarrett Stidham and Zach Wilson. At that point, we turned to debating who the Broncos would keep as QB2 between Stidham and Wilson.

And perhaps to the shock of some, the Broncos kept both Stidham and Wilson. Could this be a waste of a roster spot? Maybe, especially when you look at the team's initial 53-man roster and see that they are rostering just five wide receivers, but in the NFL and in all of sports, the QB position is the most valuable, period.

No position in any sport in the history of time comes close to being as important as the QB, and during the 2023 NFL Season, the amount of quarterback injuries was astounding. A whopping 66 quarterbacks made a start at some point in the 2023 NFL Season.

That's a lot. Sixty-eight quarterbacks made starts in 2022 as well. For teams who lost their starting QB in 2023, having a competent backup really kept them in the mix. That makes me think of the possibility that the Broncos are, let's say, 7-6 late in the 2024 NFL Season, but Bo Nix is going to be out for two games.

Those two games Nix misses would make or break their season, so having not only one, but two reliable backup QBs gives them that much more of a chance to save their season in this scenario. Furthermore, another way three QBs benefit the Denver Broncos is when the 2024 NFL Trade Deadline rolls around.

Perhaps there is a QB-needy team who desperately needs a competent backup. Could Denver leverage Zach Wilson or Jarrett Stidham into getting a fourth-round draft pick from that team? Why not?

You see, having multiple competent backup quarterbacks is a good thing, and it's far from a waste of a roster spot.

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