Denver Broncos QB Jarrett Stidham Plays Well In Preseason Game
Backup Quarterback Jarrett Stidham was the star as the Denver Broncos and Arizona Cardinals held joint practices this week at the Broncos Park in Englewood, Colorado. The plan for both teams was to practice their starters during the week and rest the first team when the lights turned on for the Saturday night NFL preseason game.
The Arizona Cardinals misread the memo, and everyone decided to take the night off. If the Cardinals used the game to gauge their depth heading into a long 17-game season, they found out they are in trouble. Denver beat the Cardinals 27-7 behind a strong performance from Stidham.
The statistics tell a story of dominance for the Broncos:
- The Broncos racked up more than 550 total yards to the Cardinals’ 135.
- Denver had 395 passing yards to the Cardinals’ 99
- Denver had 27 first downs to the Cardinals’ 8
The one win for the Cardinals in the stat department was that they had no turnovers while Denver had one.
Jarrett Stidham Proves Denver Has a Solid Quarterback Room
Stidham passed for 240 yards on 16-of-23 completed passes. He threw for two touchdowns in one half of work and left with the Broncos up 24-7. Last week, he also threw for two touchdowns. Stidham will be the backup to last year’s top rookie, Bo Nix. In the second half, third-string Quarterback Sam Ehlinger proved to be no slouch, hitting 14-of-16 for 162 yards.
Denver Wide Receiver Troy Franklin excelled with two touchdown catches and 67 yards receiving. Franklin is in his second year and was a fourth-round pick. Last year, he only had 28 catches for 263 yards. Head Coach Sean Payton has been happy with the development of Franklin in camp this season and saw the confidence come through in the game. Rookie Pat Bryant had 70 yards on four catches.
Sean Payton Gives Up Play-Calling Duties
Trying something new, Payton did not call the offensive plays. He used the preseason game to see what his Quarterbacks Coach, Davis Webb, would do with the play-calling power. Payton seemed impressed as he gave Webb the game ball after the game.
For the Cardinals, meanwhile, after their performance, maybe they can try something new with their coaching. During the week, Arizona Diamondbacks Manager Torey Lovullo visited the two teams. He joked that if given a chance to coach in the NFL, he would pick special teams. After the poor showing on Saturday, anything new should be on the table for the Cardinals.
