Zach Wilson is outshining veteran NFL QB so far this preseason

The Denver Broncos quarterbacks are putting together a solid preseason showing so far, and the Broncos should make one no-brainer move regarding the backup position.

During this year’s draft, Head Coach Sean Payton did exactly what everyone said he would; he drafted Oregon quarterback Bo Nix 12th overall. Before that, though, the Broncos traded for Zach Wilson from the New York Jets and already had Jarrett Stidham on the roster. Throughout this preseason, most people probably would have thought that Wilson would play like he has in the past and be third in the pecking order; I would argue that isn’t the case. 

Through two preseason games, Wilson has played within himself and the confines of the offense and has played relatively mistake-free football, especially with no turnovers. In the shootout with the Colts, Wilson went 10-of-13 for 117 yards with no turnovers. Stidham went 4-of-7 with 37 yards and an interception. Stidham was moving the ball well before the pick (which wasn’t his fault), and penalties were killing the drive, to his credit. 

Fast-forward to week two, when the Broncos drubbed the Packers 27-2. Looking at the stats, Stidham went 7-of-11 for 65 yards and another interception; it was batted at the line, but still. He did make up some ground with a 9-yard rushing score. Wilson finished 2-of-9 with 29 yards and one touchdown with no interceptions. Wilson has been making good decisions with football this preseason, which, yes, I get; it’s only preseason. 

This is where the determination comes in on why the Broncos should trade Stidham and keep Wilson. If they traded Stidham to a hungry team (looking at you, Minnesota), they would save $6 million. If they trade Wilson, they save roughly $2.7 million, according to Over the Cap. 

If you look at it from a cost-savings standpoint, it makes more sense to trade Stidham, even though Wilson has more starting experience. Given Wilson's track record, it also makes more sense for a team to trade for Stidham if they are in a pinch. 

Bo Nix is the starter now and in the future and should be announced as the week one starter when Denver takes on Seattle. Wilson should be the number two. His performance in training camp has progressed nicely. Payton has talked highly of Wilson thus far, and Stidham hasn’t done anything to show that he should be number two over Wilson.

So far, Payton has proven that he can get the best out of Wison this preseason, and Stidham, whether it’s his fault or not, has turned the ball over, which is something people have ridiculed Wilson over, and he has had a clean preseason. Granted, Wilson did get sacked for safety against the Packers, but the defensive player was essentially unblocked.

I may be in the minority on this, and that’s completely okay, but if Nix got injured, I would much rather have Wilson step in than Stidham. As long as he is operating within the offense, which is all Payton was asking Russell Wilson to do (shocker why they didn’t get along), Zach Wilson has shown he can move the ball, make the plays, and score points. 

My guess for pecking order in week one is if the Broncos keep three quarterbacks: Bo Nix at the one, Zach Wilson at the two, and Jarrett Stidham at the three. As long as Wilson doesn’t implode in some way in the last preseason game, he has earned the backup role.