ENGLEWOOD, Colo — As a tight end, Adam Trautman's job is closely connected to the quarterback.
So before he re-signed Tuesday with the Broncos, didn't Trautman have uneasy feelings about the Broncos' uncertain quarterback situation?
“No. You don’t know exactly how it’s going to go down and how they’re going to do things, but I feel very confident in Jarrett,'' Trautman said. "And I felt that all of last year."
He speaks of Jarrett Stidham, who got the call from head coach Sean Payton to start ahead of Russell Wilson in the final two games of last season. Wilson claimed he was benched because of a contract matter. Payton said it was because he wanted to spark the offense.
Stidham went 1-1 in the final two games, completing 40 of 66 passes for 496 yards, two touchdowns and one interception. Wilson will be officially released Wednesday from the Broncos -- even though the team will pay $37.79 million of his 2024 salary -- and will quickly sign with the Pittsburgh Steelers.
The Broncos did show interest in adding veteran Sam Darnold to their quarterback position this week, but once they found out his asking price was $10 million for the 2024 season, Denver decided against making an offer. The Broncos want their new veteran quarterback to compete with Stidham. And if Darnold is making $10 million to Stidham's $6 million, it's probably not going to be a fair competition.
Trautman believes Stidham is ready to start Game 1 -- (perhaps against Wilson's Steelers?) --for the first time in his six-year career.
"I think he has great control of the line of scrimmage,'' Trautman said Tuesday a few hours after he returned to the Broncos on a two-year contract. "He’s very intelligent. One of the things nobody else will see is, when I’m leaving the building as one of the last people to leave, Jarrett is always in there. He’s probably the last one to leave every day."
Even when Stidham was the backup the first 15 games of the season?
"Even when he was the backup,'' Trautman said. "I was always amazed by that. That’s why when he was named the starter I was like, 'All right, I’m confident.' Because I’ve seen him. When you see him staying after, guys respect that and you want to play with that and for that. I think he’s pretty damn good. Whatever direction they go in, I do feel confident with Jarrett.”
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