Newly named starting QB Bo Nix to skip Broncos’ preseason finale with Stidham, Wilson sharing snaps

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. (AP) — Fans hoping to see the Denver Broncos’ newly anointed starting quarterback in action will have to wait for the regular season after coach Sean Payton said Friday the two QBs beaten out by Bo Nix will share the workload against Arizona this weekend.

Nix was named the starter Wednesday after leading the Broncos (2-0) on six scoring drives in seven possessions in the preseason and throwing two touchdown passes while avoiding any sacks or turnovers.

Jarrett Stidham will start when Denver wraps up the preseason Sunday at home against the Cardinals (0-2), although Zach Wilson will get the bulk of the workload, Payton said.

Payton is considering keeping all three QBs on his 53-man roster. Asked if he needed to see anything in particular from either Stidham or Wilson, Payton said, “No, we’ve got a pretty good idea the direction we’re going.”

He said he was going to meet with general manager George Paton and others later Friday to go over the depth chart, “but I think we’ve got a real good handle on that room specifically. And we’re not announcing anything. But I’ve said this and I’ll say it again, I like the room. I feel like we’ve gotten better and this will be a good test, a good opportunity for Zach getting work with the second wave. He’ll get a lot of snaps.”

The Broncos signed Stidham on the first day of free agency in 2023 and they traded for Wilson, the former No. 2 overall draft pick by the Jets in ’21, just before selecting Nix out of Oregon with the 12th overall pick in the NFL draft in April.

The Broncos open the season Sept. 8 at Seattle, a week before their home opener against the Pittsburgh Steelers, who signed Russell Wilson after the Broncos jettisoned him in February.

Nix will be the first rookie to start an opener for the Broncos since John Elway in 1983 and he’ll also be the 14th different player to start at the position for Denver since another Hall of Famer, Peyton Manning, retired shortly after the Super Bowl in 2016.

Notes: Payton said WR Josh Reynolds was held out of practice Friday because “he’s got some wear and tear on one of his Achilles.”