Payton makes it official: Stidham holds off Ehlinger for QB2 job
Sean Payton ended a real training-camp competition by naming Jarrett Stidham his backup quarterback again, even after Sam Ehlinger closed the gap and re-signed to stay and fight for it.
Payton settles it: Stidham holds off Ehlinger for QB2
Sean Payton closed the book this week on a quarterback competition that had quietly gotten interesting: Jarrett Stidham, not Sam Ehlinger, is Bo Nix's backup arm for 2026. Asked point-blank whether Stidham had the job locked up, Payton didn't hedge. "Yes, he would be now, in fairness to the question," he said — a small tell that Ehlinger had actually closed the gap enough over camp to make the answer worth asking.
It wasn't nothing on Ehlinger's end, either. He re-signed with Denver on a one-year, $2 million deal, made the initial 53-man roster, and turned down a chance to return to Indianapolis after an injury to the Colts' starter, Pro Football Rumors reports — he wanted to stay and fight for this. Stidham gets the job anyway, the same one he's held since 2023, on the strength of a longer history with the franchise. Pat Surtain II and Garett Bolles followed their coach to the podium and kept returning to the same word Payton keeps using: process. "You really focus on the process leading up to the game," Payton said, even with Denver two weeks from Kansas City.
Last time out: Ehlinger throws 3 TD passes, Nix stays on the sideline
Denver closed its exhibition slate the way it opened one — with a blowout — beating the Vikings 34-6 on August 29 at Empower Field. Sam Ehlinger ran the show and threw 3 touchdown passes, the best of them an improvised, scrambling completion to Cody Schrader for a 14-yard score, per denverbroncos.com. Schrader led everyone with 132 scrimmage yards, and fullback Adam Prentice scored his second touchdown of the preseason as Denver pulled away for good. Bo Nix didn't take a single snap — Payton held his starter out entirely, the clearest sign the coaching staff already had what it needed. Denver finishes the preseason 2-1.
Vikings34-6
Packers13-33
Falcons27-7Troy Franklin's night was the quiet part: he failed to secure his only target, and it lands at an awkward moment for him on the depth chart. The Jaylen Waddle trade in March dropped Franklin behind Courtland Sutton, Waddle and Marvin Mims Jr. on Denver's unofficial receiver chart, even after Franklin reportedly turned in one of his sharper days of camp in team drills. It's a real number on a night that otherwise didn't have many for him.
Cooper's trial date lands as the offense settles into shape
Linebacker Drew Sanders reverted to injured reserve Monday for an undisclosed issue, Parker Gabriel of The Denver Post reports — the latest subtraction from a defense already down Jonathon Cooper. Cooper stood in a Douglas County courtroom Monday and pleaded not guilty to five charges, including second-degree felony assault, with a jury trial now set for November 10, per Adam Schefter — the first hard date attached to a case that had until now been all headlines and no calendar. Denver also brought in safety Taylor Rapp for a workout Thursday, per Aaron Wilson of AaronWilson_NFL, adding a look at depth without a corresponding move.
Broncos OLB Jonathon Cooper pleaded not guilty to multiple domestic violence charges Monday in a Douglas County (Colorado) courtroom, per @Jeff_Legwold. A trial date for Cooper was set for Nov. 10 with a jury. t.co/AzfmPT1E6v
The offense, meanwhile, is starting to take real shape two weeks out. J.K. Dobbins is "moving well" and on track to play Week 1 against the Chiefs, Chris Tomasson of The Denver Gazette reports, with Jonah Coleman expected to serve as his between-the-tackles complement, per Nick Kosmider of The Athletic. RJ Harvey is ticketed for a real role in the passing game, Jon Heath of USA Today reports, and OC Davis Webb said Jaylen Waddle is "going to play everywhere" on offense, per Zac Stevens of TheDNVR.com — with Courtland Sutton and Pat Bryant rounding out a receiver room that finally has an unofficial order to it.
Mahomes and the Chiefs are waiting, nine months removed from knee surgery
Denver closes out the league's opening slate Monday night in Kansas City, and the Chiefs on the other side of it are not the team their preseason suggests. Kansas City finished the exhibition slate 0-2-1 with Patrick Mahomes sitting out every snap of it, held back from a December knee surgery — but he's practiced every day of camp since being cleared and is now expected to start. Denver opened as a 2.5-point underdog on the road, with the total pinned at a low-scoring 42.5, our own numbers as recorded at the open.
Mahomes has said the whole rehab was built around this exact date. "This has always been the plan: be ready for training camp, get all the reps in training camp, prepare your body that way, so that when we get to Week 1, you're ready to play the game and you've had the right amount of time off," he said. Andy Reid isn't hedging either — "I would never bet against him," the coach said — which makes a game that already had Denver on the road for Monday Night Football look tougher than the Chiefs' own preseason line would suggest.