Locked On Broncos - Daily Podcast On The Denver Broncos - BRONCOS SQUAD SHOW: Jarrett Stidham TAKES OVER After Bo Nix Injury

Episode Date: January 18, 2026

The Denver Broncos will be without quarterback Bo Nix for the remainder of the postseason. Nix was injured at the end of the Broncos thrilling OT victory over the Buffalo Bills on Saturday. Jarrett Stidham will be the Broncos QB moving forward in the AFC Championship game. Join Aniello Piro, Cody Roark and Nick Ferguson as they react to the news and look ahead to the AFC Championship game. Support Us By Supporting Our Sponsors! TurboTax For a limited time, you can have your taxes done by a local TurboTax expert for just $150 — all in, if a TurboTax expert didn’t file for you last year. Just file by February 28. Visit http://TurboTax.com/local to book your appointment today. DripDrop Right now, DripDrop is offering podcast listeners 20% off your first order. Go to http://dripdrop.com and use promo code lockedonnfl. Ultimate QB Ultimate QB is totally free to play, has no ads, and works 100% offline — perfect for when you want to sneak in a quick game or two on the go. Just head over to http://ULTIMATE-QB.COM. FanDuel Today's episode is brought to you by FanDuel. FanDuel is officially in Playoff Mode. Every game day during the NFL playoffs, FanDuel is giving customers even more ways to get in on the action. Visit Fanduel.com to get started. PrizePicks Download the PrizePicks app today and use code LOCKEDONNFL to get $50 in lineups after you play your first $5 lineup. Click Here: https://prizepicks.onelink.me/LME0/LOCKEDONNFL Gametime Download the Gametime app, create an account, and use code LOCKEDONNFL for $20 off your first purchase. Terms apply. Download Gametime today. What time is it? Gametime. Robinhood Trade Every Play with Robinhood. Now available across the U.S. Download the Robinhood app now to begin. Futures and cleared swaps trading involves significant risk and is not appropriate for everyone. Event contracts are offered by Robinhood Derivatives, LLC., a registered futures commission merchant and swap firm Indeed Listeners of this show get a $75 Sponsored Job Credit to help give your job the premium placement it deserves at http://Indeed.com/lockedonnfl. FANDUEL DISCLAIMER: 21+ in select states. First online real money wager only. Bonus issued as nonwithdrawable free bets that expires in 14 days. Restrictions apply. See terms at sportsbook.fanduel.com. Gambling Problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER or visit FanDuel.com/RG (CO, IA, MD, MI, NJ, PA, IL, VA, WV), 1-800-NEXT-STEP or text NEXTSTEP to 53342 (AZ), 1-888-789-7777 or visit ccpg.org/chat (CT), 1-800-9-WITH-IT (IN), 1-800-522-4700 (WY, KS) or visit ksgamblinghelp.com (KS), 1-877-770-STOP (LA), 1-877-8-HOPENY or text HOPENY (467369) (NY), TN REDLINE 1-800-889-9789 (TN) Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

I'm Anilo Piro, and it was a bitter, sweet day at the office for the Denver Broncos, but I also want my bet with Cody, so that's a good thing. I'm Cody Rourke, and even though Bone Nix is out, Denver Broncos are preparing to get steady with it. I'm Nick Ferguson, and the Broncos still can't run the ball. All that more on today's Lockdown Broncos Squad show. Let's get into it, fellas. From the South Stans, it's the Broncos squad.

everything Denver Broncos every week covering all the big hits and game changing plays from the mile high city the way only the locked on podcast network can gear up and squad up the Broncos squad show starts now what is going on broncos country and welcome on in to your locked on bronco squad show anilo piero cody work and nick ferguson joining you here today sarah bedinger on assignment but he will be back with us soon enough and and that today's episode of your lockdown of Broncos squad show is brought to you by our friends over at Fanduil. If you want to be right in the middle of the action this season, visit Fanduil.com and place your NFL live bets all season long. So yesterday was one of the craziest days, if not the craziest day, at least in my media career. And I know Broncos country is probably on a roller coaster of emotions and had a little time to kind of let the news sink in. And we'll talk about the Broncos absolutely thrilling victory over the Buffalo Bills in overtime. What a game that was for Denver yesterday. But what, about an hour or so after the game, a little while after the game,

we hear from Sean Payton. And the news comes out, Cody, that they will be without quarterback Bo Nix for the remainder of the postseason suffers a fractured ankle on one of the final plays of the game in overtime. So a bittersweet kind of 12, 24 hours, I guess you could say for Broncos country here. Yeah, look, I mean, just terrible news to get after the highs of such an amazing win for the team. Look, that was a thriller. Cardiac kids, once again, you survive in overtime against the Buffalo Bills and Josh Allen, who everyone was plaguing to be Superman.

And, you know, Josh Allen is a pretty damn good player. And despite the fact that the bills had so many turnovers, he was hard to stop consistently all night long. but the Broncos, they found away. Bo Nix led a legacy drive in the fourth quarter here. And just unfortunate news, you know, the crazy thing about it is there was no real sense of it when everything happened on the field. I mean, we know what play happened. I was on that QB design run to the left side there. He got twisted up on getting tackled by a bishop of the bills.

Then, you know, we go in the locker room after the game. And I see Bow on the X-ray table as we're entering the locker room. It's like, you know, maybe he's gas, maybe he's getting fluids, whatever maybe. because they have IV stations across the board, right? And then in the locker room, I'm sitting there, I'm staying in the doorway, I'm looking, and then Beau's walking off the x-ray table and he's walking in the back.

So we didn't think anything of it. And then obviously after post-locker room access that we had there, we got them talking to Pat Sertan, I was heading back to go upstairs to write my game story when we got the notification. I thought at first, I thought, is this a fake tweet that just all of a sudden just made its way to my feet? And all of a sudden it wasn't just that.

It was after tweeting it. It was rap sheet tweeting. I was like, wait a minute, we're just there, and all of a sudden, we get a notification. Sean Payton's talking to the media again. I was like, wait a minute, something's up here. And unfortunately, just the worst news you could have after such, you know, a big win here for the franchise. Yeah. And one thing I could tell you guys, like you and I were covering the game, Nick.

I know you were there yesterday as well, I believe. And I was in the room when Sean Payton came to give that update to Bo Nix. And so I start typically in the media room where they put Sean and Bo up typically, right? Work my way to the locker. room and I'm in the locker room. I see you, you know, we're kind of running crazy trying to get these different player interviews and these scrums. And then I go back to the media room because I'm like, I got to, you know, send video to my colleagues and figure out what I'm trying to post for social and all that good stuff. And the door opens as we're waiting, expecting it to be Bo Nix to come

into the media because he hadn't done so at that point. And the door opens and it's Sean Peyton in his street close. And I'm like, what's the heck is this? And, you know, he was, he had like a little off the cuff remark about like I just wanted to talk to you guys again and then he delivers the news and Cody the one I can't even describe the feeling in that room and look obviously like Nick's a little bit different because you played for the team but like media like we're not necessarily fans of the Broncos I think we want the Broncos to do well because it helps us in our careers and the coverage and all that kind of stuff as well but there was just a shock factor like I've never really experienced before in a postgame press

conference when Sean Payton delivers that news and it really really kind of took a while to settle in. I remember I get back up to the press box. I'm like looking at you. You're looking at me. I'm like, what the heck is going on? Like, and it just turned the whole. It was a total curveball that really threw off the rest of the night. But Nick, I mean, have you ever experienced anything like this throughout the course of your playing career? And obviously just like your natural thoughts on the Bo Nick's news last night. Like this is the biggest story in sports right now. Yeah, I would say it's the biggest story in sports because of where the Broncos are at this particular point. And it was like a gut punch. And I mean, it's almost like finding out at your

birthday party, your father's not your father, right? It was kind of one. That's a crazy cough, but yeah. It's kind of one of those things. The reason I gave you the crazy cop because surprise. Yeah, surprise. It's so shocking because when I left the stadium, I waited a while to let the crowd die down and just trying to, you know, filming some other stuff throughout the stadium. And I'm sitting in my car, I put my key in to turn the engine, and I go to put up a charger, and then something came across from James Palmer, right? So when I looked at it, I looked at it and I was like, nah, this can't be real. This is AI. And that's how great AI has become over the past a couple of years. And I said, wait, let me see if one else did pop up, but the fan reaction

it was real and it was happening in real time. So many people who thought, just like I did, just like you guys, that this wasn't real, it was AI, and big frank, then we'll find out, no, it is true. Bo Nix will not be playing in any other games at this point. And then it's in question as far as, what is this going to look like as far as this is concerned?

When is he going to come back? Because if I'm not mistaken, there are something. the one-year deal, right? I think a two. I think it was a two. Let me, I'll look it up. Is it two?

I also know he's the highest paid backup quarterback in football, if I remember correctly. I think he's making $8 million a year, right? Yeah, it's a two-year deal. Okay, so what a great job for him being the backup quarterback, but you're now being thrust into the most important game in your career, knowing that you've only had four NFL starts. And if we were to look at those starts, two were for the Denver Broncos. One was for the Raiders and the other was for the New England Patriots,

all at the end of the season where the starter was either benched or he was injured. But now you have to come in and you have to continue moving this team forward. It's almost like you're coming in. There is a last second kick. And let's go back for a second to that Will Lutz kick. Take that kick, but move it back. to the 56 yard line. And you got to nail that to win.

That's where Jera Stidham is right now, gentlemen. Yeah, I mean, it's just been a crazy handful of hours, you know, half a day almost coming up on a full day now. And the only reason that I believe that the news was real is because I heard it from Sean Payton directly. And even like in the moment when I heard the news, I was like, what? Like, I was perplexed.

Like I was generally shocked to get that information. Peyton Manning thought it was fake. He called the team official to say, like, hey, is this real? And they said, yeah, it's real. So, I mean, just. I think, and I was talking about it with some colleagues, the only thing in my career, and I've been working in media for about 10 years now. Don't even get me started on some of your colleagues, brother.

Some of the stuff I saw last night. My gosh. Oh, oh. Yeah. I don't think it's rage bait. I think it's legitimate takes. Does he really believe that nonsense? Like, come on.

Yeah. You're going to stop giving some of these dudes microphones, man. Well, I was just going to say, Michael, alone getting fired is the only thing that comes close with respect to shock value. But there was some buildup to that. I mean, with the nuggets obviously. But this is this is completely out of left field for Bo Nix. And I like what you bring up here, Nick.

And we also got some breaking news right before the start of the show that the Broncos are resigning Ben Danucci to their practice squad. So that will be your emergency third string quarterback for this game, whether it's against the Patriots or the Texans. We'll see how this game shakes house is currently being played as we're recording this show. but Ben Danucci back with the Broncos, which I think Cody, as we were talking about, makes a lot of sense, a guy that was here a couple of years ago and is familiar with the playbook,

and God willing, does not have to see the field. Yeah, no, he won't see the field. And that, I mean, obviously, you don't want him to see the field, but you need in that room just to have an emergency, just in case, right? The rarity, it ain't likely going to happen, but you never know. We saw it a few years ago with Brock Purdy.

I think it's a good rule that the NFL implemented to be able to have. I mean, for example, yesterday's game, Sam Ellinger was inactive, but he was the emergency third quarterback. in the event, something for to happen. So nothing too significant there. And just here's the thing. Like, I'm not necessarily as worried about, like, I think this is a huge blow for Bo

Knicks to be done. It's huge. Bo Nix has done so much. And once again, I even said he led that legacy drive in the fourth quarter. You're down 27, 23. And all of a sudden, you start getting in rhythm. You find Marvin Mims for that touchdown. It's like, wow, this was a legacy drive for Bo Nix.

And then obviously, you know, just being able to open things up. take some shots down field and overtime there. For me, it's a huge loss to not have Bo, but I'm not worried if Jarrett Stidham steps in. Like certainly, Jared can't do some of the things we know Bo can do, right? But I think Jarrett's experience as a veteran more so being in this system for three years, I think is very beneficial to him at least in terms of operating it. Look, we saw him in the preseason. He was in two games, 30 of 36 passing for over 370-something yards, four touchdowns.

I understand it's preseason. against, you know, a handful of different guys there, but who he had personnel-wise in some of those games, some starters, some guys that are rotating in a wide receiver right now, he's got good chemistry here. I have confidence in him being able to operate the system. Is it going to be the same as Bo? No, but there's maybe things that the Broncos can do now with sit-im. I wouldn't be shocked if we see a really healthy balance of under center and also shotgun here, you know, this upcoming week here. I think it might mean some more things for Evan Ingram based on what we saw on the preseason, but a huge loss, but at this same exact standpoint, too, the defense can get,

if they play at the same rate that they did against the bills and were able to generate those takeaways, force those turnovers, I think that Jared Stedham can operate this offense. Well, I think the big wild card, and we'll probably all agree on this is the run game here. Denver, once again, has not been able to run the football. We didn't see it against the Buffalo Bills. Obviously, in yesterday's game, and they're one of the worst run defenses in the league coming into it. That's going to have to change.

But you know what? every game has a different story in its own right. And maybe, just maybe it gets going. We'll see. Yeah, obviously it's not an ideal situation for Broncos country, whichever way you slice it. But Jared Sidham probably provides the most possible confidence, I think you could have in a backup quarterback.

I mean, we saw Nick Foulds with the Philadelphia Eagles about 10 years ago. I know he was starting earlier in the season, right? I believe Roger Stalbock did something similar with the Dallas Cowboys, all those years back as well. And like I said, this is about a, If Bowenicks were to get hurt, this is about a good of a quarterback as you could have as your backup and Jared Stidham, Nick. Yeah, it gives you a certain level of confidence and reassurance that your offense can still move the ball down the field. But like Cody said, when you think about the preseason, Jared Stidham did well in preseason.

But of all things, it is in fact the preseason. And could we see more, I guess, creativity or, dare I say, more. receivers involved, he mentioned Evan Ingram. If that were to happen and we saw Stidham play more from under center, here's what that would say to me. That would say that we didn't see Boe play from under center as much as we saw Stidham play because there was a lack of concern with Boe's ability to play from under center. Then I go back and I look at Boe Nix 46 passing attempts, right?

He was 22 of 46, even though he led that drive. And it was a great pass. And it seemed like both teams were playing off that slot fade because the Broncos got a chance to get some opportunities in the passing game. And so did the Buffalo Bill. So that may be the course of action for the Denver Broncos moving forward with Jared Stidham. But you still have that one problem. Right. In two years, you still have not been able to run the ball.

And like Cody said, that's what we all expected. We were talking about the bills having the first, the number one ranked passing defense. coming into this game. And it showed at times. But then you felt as though the Broncos could take advantage from a running standpoint, and they really couldn't. They mustered 70 yards rushing. And I think Bo Nix may have had like, I don't know, 30, 40 of those. So Jaliel McLaughlin didn't really get off. And neither did, you know, R.J. Harvey. So the question becomes, once again, is it the fact that the Broncos cannot run the ball because the running back? or ill-equipped. I would say no. The idea is staying committed to the run game, but also the

offensive line being able to create space up front by moving guys on the offensive line and driving them off the ball. You would have thought the 28th ranked rushing defense, you would be able to blow them off the ball. That didn't happen. And I don't know if you want Gerrits Stidham throwing 40 plus times a game. Yeah. And I, and 10 rushing attempts combined between R.J. Harvey and Jalil yesterday. Bo himself had 12. Yeah, and he was a leading rusher with that kind of speaks volumes in terms of the approach. And his longest of the 12 was 11 yards.

Yeah, here's what I will say, because I completely agree with you. And maybe it changes because it's Jared Stiddam. It ain't happening, bro. Like, it's just the Sean Payton way. You know, love him, hate him, live by the sword, die by the sword. He's going to go with those dink and dunk short passes. It's just the reality situation. Again, maybe his hand is forced a little bit here with Jared Stidham being the quarterback instead of Bo Nix.

But the reality of the situation is he's a past happy play caller. And obviously, you know, the Broncos got the win yesterday. So say LaVie, right? You can't be all that. Make sure now, don't do the Tony Romo and have me go after you too, right? Now, as you say that, as you say that, two things can be true at the same time. So just my suggestion, as you say that, add the end to it, right? to establish why that happened.

Well, why don't we hit a break? And when we come back, let's dive into that matchup between the Broncos and the Bills. Obviously, talk about Bo Nix's performance, but also get at what I think Nick Ferguson is trying to hit out here a little bit. So let's hit a break.

We'll come back and do just that right here on your locked on Broncos squad show. Back in just a moment, folks. All right, you guys. Real quick, let me tell you about our friends over at prize picks because this episode is brought to you by Price Show. PICE PICS, whether you're starting a new routine or jumping into player projections for the first time,

trying something new can feel like a challenge. But with prize picks, it always feels good to be right. With high pressure football matchups every weekend and Elite Hoops action almost every night, the action never slows down. And Price Picks lets you stay in control. Price Picks is the daily fantasy app that makes watching sports even more exciting by letting you build lineups based on player projections. No drafts, no waiting, just pick more or less in play.

your way. Getting started on price picks was quick and simple. The app is super easy to navigate. It's made watching games more engaging, especially following individual player performances. I love the flexibility with options like flex play, where you can still get paid even if one pick misses. The new early payout feature is an absolute game changer. If a player starts hot, you can cash out before the game ends. So download the Price Picks app today and use code locked on NFL to get $50 in lineups after you play. your first $5 lineup. That's code locked on NFL to get $50 in lineups after your first $5 lineup. Price picks, it's good to be right.

Be sure to check out our friends over at Price Picks, guys, and let them know that Lockedon Broncos sent you. Okay, welcome on back into the program here. Neil O'Piro, Cody, Rick, Ferguson on your Lockdown Broncos squad show. Hope everyone is hanging in there in Broncos country, obviously mixed emotions with the win, coupled by the news with Bo Nix. We appreciate all of you watching on YouTube right now. The chat is humming all of our live viewer.

Shout out to you guys. Do us a favor, though, hit that like button, smash that subscribe button. It really helps us out here on the channel. So do you want to talk about the five turnovers, Nick? Is that what we're trying to get at with the defense? Is that your big takeaway? Hell yeah. Listen, man, I've had to listen to so many people in this market,

individuals who I work with in broadcasting, and even those on the national level who are constantly talking about, hey, here's the offense and here's what happened and the comebacks and the fourth quarter drives. All of that's fantastic. I love it. We can't take it away because those are things that actually happen. Now, the part that is often overlooked or not really truly discuss is, where are we going to give the credit?

give acknowledging what we actually saw acknowledging the players individually, acknowledging the group as a whole, but more importantly, acknowledging the guy who's a damn architect of the defense, right? And for me, being a former guy, it is so effing frustrating to watch. And, you know, people in this league prop quarterbacks up, but we never really truly give the defense their love.

Now, if someone moves a ball down on the defense and God forbid, They scored 20 points. The defense played like crap. But it's like, well, what has this defense done all season long? They have, like, you know, Drew Lachiaz to say put on for my city. They've done that. They've done it time and time again. So why can't we not say their name?

Why can't we not give Vance Joseph his flowers and say, well, this damn defense is carry this team to this point. And even with them being the quarterback, they're going to have to carry his ass too, right? So they're going to need some soft shoes or whatever those comfortable shoes that they wear in the hospital to make sure that you're not on your feet all day and your back's hurting. They need to give the Broncos defense some of those shoes because they've been carrying this team all season long. Yeah, let me do my best LeBron impression. Not one, not two, not three, not four, but five turnovers. Doing a LeBron bit on a Bronco show.

You know, it's more than a LeBron bit, though. It's more like a sports culture bit. Yeah, I know. Five turnovers. I mean, the Texans are trying to do their best Josh Allen impersonation right now at the Buffalo Bills with all their turnover problems. And this team. And it would be the Texan Squachio, talking about C.J. Stroud after this game.

Yeah. Ooi, that was rough. I will say this because I know I want to talk about the J-Quant interception because that is lighting this social media world on fire. And I wish Sarah was here because we were going back and forth with him about this earlier in the week. How about Nick Benito yesterday, man? I mean, that one sack fumble that he had when he came off the edge, I believe he was supposed to try to be like a pick play or something like that.

I'm not trying to get, you know, nostalgia baiting or anything like that. That was like what we saw from Von Miller in his prime. Like the way that Nick came off the edge for that play, that is what we've been waiting to see from Nick Benino. Now we've seen it from, of course, throughout the course of his career. But that was one of our keys to victory, Cody, is Nick Benito in that defensive line stepping up and they did just that. Yeah, look, and not only just that,

I think in general, one thing we've talked about, and as Sean has talked about, is that the turnover margin has to change. Like, you know, Denver's defense, as good as they've been for a large force of season, say they're only, like a valid critique is that they just weren't getting enough takeaways, right? And we are all sitting here, wondering, when is that going to happen?

Like, you get one here and there. Okay, that's great. You're getting stops. You're getting sacks. That's incredible. No one's saying it's not. But it's like, hey, the takeaways could be the things that make a difference. We saw that against the Dallas Cowboys.

We saw that against the Green Bay Packers. And in this game in particular, the Broncos defense came up big when we talk about needing a takeaway. I mean, it could have gotten out of hand relatively quickly after James Cook and the bills, they just kept marching down the field against the defense. I mean, Denver was trying to plug. And that's the thing about this Bill's offense. Like, you get a lot of credit to them.

That's a damn good unit. That's a good football team over there in Buffalo with Josh Allen and with James Cook. Those two guys are incredible. They make that offense run there for Buffalo. And they at times chunk Denver's defense. And we talk about Bemba don't break. Yeah, we see that. Alex Singleton doing a great job pursuing and sticking James Cook, forcing a fumble that led to another opportunity for Denver.

You talk about even another play right before halftime. Josh Allen's trying to scramble for it, holding the ball out loose. Nick Benito, great effort play, knocks out of his hands. Devin Key picks up Will Lutz, boots in a field goal. Denver steals three points before halftime. PJ Locke makes an incredible freaking interception reading over that, you know, obviously they were playing quarters coverage there to the field, the field side, they're matched up on the boundary. He's covering and he gets number three.

He climbs over the top of number three on a corner route and just makes an incredible play. And then we even talk about Jaquah McMillan and what he was able to do, man. I mean, that play right there was incredible. And I know everyone on social media, they're using still images and screenshots to try to prove their point. But you watch the video, there's a really great angle of it that exemplifies exactly what the rulebook says about. maintaining possession. Brandon Cooks didn't have possession of that on his way to the ground. You have to make that all the way to the ground. It's the Des Bryant rule essentially. Now, if that ball would have popped up and landed on the ground, guess what? It's incomplete.

But it's a play on the ball and Jayquan obviously pulled it. He sonned him. He little man, wait room, son. And you want to know something else as well? Did you see Brandon Cook saying, no, I caught it, I caught it? No, he didn't even lobby for it. He knew he had his lunch money took by Jayquan. That was a huge play here. In the Broncos defense, they bled a lot in this game. they finally found a way to put a tourniquet on, you know, the chunk plays, and they made the big plays when it matter. And that's why I think Nick will say that they're the McGiver defense, because, you know, they'll make something out of nothing there.

Like, let's see, what do I have on my desk right here? I'm looking right now. I've got a flashlight. I don't even know what the hell you could do with a flashlight here in the situation, but the Broncos defense, they know exactly what you. I don't know, shining the quarterback's eyes and getting interception. I don't know, maybe. But that's my point.

You can shine it in someone else's eyes, but you can also use it as a weapon, blunt force trauma, right? And that's the whole idea of using it from that standpoint and being a MacGyver. And this defense, man, they've been awesome all season long. And like any defense, man, you're going to bend sometimes. You may even break, but it's being able to make those plays and those times when you need it the most. And I know everything for me, looking at it,

at this team where they are right now, it's just like being transported back in time and looking at 2015 and that Broncos Super Bowl team, right? You mentioned earlier Nick Benito making a comparison to Von Miller, right? Then you can say Jonathan Cooper would be this version of Demarcus Ware. But then when you look at that 2015 team, Peyton Manning was a shell of himself. He wasn't the great sheriff as we know him to be leading up to that point.

And we see the Broncos playing in tough games. Wade Phillips was the defense of coordinator and who is now the divas of coordinator, one of his understudies in Vance Joseph. So everything seemed to be aligning perfectly for them to go back to Levi Stadium at the scene of the crime, if you will, but this is why defense in the postseason wins championship. You can save all those offensive stats for the regular season. But when it comes to this type of year, this type of.

for football, you lean heavily on your defense and you usually lean on your run game, but that run game has been on a milk card because they've been missing all season long, right? Yeah. Yeah. So, I mean, look, really quickly, I want to bring this up because obviously the Brandon Cooks play, right? I'm talking, having these conversations with a couple of guys I know who's officials, and there's a back and forth showing as though that there's a rule that says like there's three steps that you need to go through. You need a security catch, two hands on the ball.

You need to make sure that you're in bounds, right? Then you need to survive the ground. And I don't like the overtime rules where all the challenges come from the booth because what happens if the boot doesn't see it the same way you see it as a coach. So I would have, I would like for the rules to be changed where you give each coach a chance to challenge a particular play. But I just feel with so much on the line, they should have spent more time actually trying to review it because the way I saw it was I looked at Brandon Cook's gloves because he had on red gloves. So I'm looking for a hand on top, hand on the bottom. And then I'm saying, okay, well, he's going to the ground, left leg, left shin. Jayquan had his hand in. He

hadn't ripped it, hadn't pulled it. Once they hit the ground, that's when the ball moved. Now, A receiver has to survive the ground in order for it to be ruled a catch. Now, as Gene Stetrethor tried to explain it, if Jaquam body was nowhere near near Brandon Cook's and the ball comes out, it's an incomplete pass. But if his body is there, now it's somehow interception. I'm like, well, what happened to the whole idea of receiver or intended receiver down on the ground defenders making contact with that guy on. on the ground, things changing.

I'll take you back two years ago. Remember when the Broncos were playing the New England Patriots? And I think it was Giovante Williams caught a pass near the Patriot sideline. He was tackled on the ground. A Patriot's defender was tackling him, rolled over, and they gave the ball to the Patriots. No review, no challenge. Even then, I thought it was BS. So I would rather see the league actually give the coaches opportunity to review it

or review it with quality based on where you are in that game type situation. So how it was explained to me, because I understand that. Apparently back in, they have people there, like replay assist. Back in New York, they have people up in the box that are actively reviewing every play as it happened. And so usually they get the call from up there. So if they call that there, there's got to at least be some transparency. Hey, replay assist also confirmed that this is, this was an interception.

Like I think that explanation would have probably been more well received. Instead, now it's a conspiracy theory. It's just like, come on, man. Well, the reason why I guess fans are saying that is because, one, based on how the rules work anyway, where coaches don't have any challenges. And two, soon as it was ruled by the back judge and interception, we saw the bills, defensive guys coming on the field, I mean the Broncos offensive guys. So to me, it was like, well, let's pause the game for it.

second and let's review it. That told me that the review crew, they didn't even review it, right? And if they did, they rapidly went through it. And I'm like, no, at least slow it down because the worst thing that can happen is for the Broncos, the bills, or anyone else to be in that situation, and it's not properly reviewed. And that's my only thing. Slow it down, review it, to make sure and then explain it to everyone. So there is no mixed inceptions on what everyone saw. Yeah. I mean. What about the PI calls? Well, listen, there were a couple of PI calls that should have been called on both sides.

And this is what I try to tell the fans. You know, the rules are what they are as they are written. Now, it's up to the referees to use their subjective or objective opinions based on what they saw, which is why we have review, replay. So if the refs don't get it right on the field, reviews like, no, no, no, no, no, instant rebate. Let's go ahead and review it. And I can tell you, they got little, you know, game controllers where they slow it down, speed it up. So they have the technology to do it. But this is what happens in this stage of the game. I mean, they're not going to get

every call right, but this is where I'm a fan of slowing the game down. I don't care if we don't get to 60 minutes, right? Instead of 60 minutes, it's 45 minutes. I don't care. The idea is to get the call right because there's too many coaching jobs on the line, player jobs on the line. And for those individuals who are in the sports betting field, there's money on the line. So get the damn call right. Yeah. Well, I'll say this too. Like the, you know, people are talking about the past interference calls and overtime on

the bills, the back-to-back one. I felt like the first one on Taran Johnson, I felt like that was a little more subjective. I felt like that was kind of tickey-tacky. You can make the argument for it. You can make the argument against it. I think it's clear-cut in that regard. but that wouldn't have matter because Joey Bosa also roughed Bo Nix. He was like three and a half seconds after Bo through the ball,

shoved them in the back on the ground. So that wouldn't have mattered. But then Trajavius White, that was a clear cut pass interference at that point. And then, you know, he's complaining and said, refs don't know a ball in that situation. Like, my man, as a DB, you can't put yourself in that position. You get beat, all right?

But here's the thing. You give up the PI in that situation, right? Because what do you do? You prevent the touchdown, which ultimately, in overtime, that's what you want to avoid giving up. That would have ended the game right there. You get the PI, yes, it puts you in a bad spot. But at the same exact time, it also gives you an opportunity.

You could tighten up in the goal line defensively. Anything can happen. We've seen it in the NFL. But for people to say that the Tradavius, white one, was a bad call and that it should be investigated. It's crazy to me when he got there so early. And I'm a DB guy. I'm the biggest.

You and I talk about this all the time, Nick. we are of the biggest proponents of letting D.Bs play football, but that was as clear as day. It was. It was. I definitely agree with that. And the one on Jayquan on that play with Brandon Cooks that we're talking about, could they have called, you know, pass interference? Yeah, they could because they say, well, he didn't really make a play on the ball. But the way the rule is kind of written, I mean, did he disrupt any ability for Brandon Cooks to come down with a catch? and the idea is no. Did he get there a little early? Yes, but he didn't change his body movement at all. So that's why that call becomes subjective and you don't get the PI call. They also missed, was it Malcolm Roach, I believe?

DJ Jones. Or DJ Jones there. The game could have ended on a safety call because he was being held all over the place when the bills were backed up against their own end zone. So look, I hate when the refs get involved and all that kind of stuff. It was a relatively clean game for the fact the first three and a half, four quarters of the, the game. Not a lot of flags for both teams and then it turned into a bit of a flag fest. But thankfully, Denver gets the win. Let's hit a quick break. Let's continue along with this. I got some thoughts on the J-Quann pick as well. And I think we need to give some flowers to some of the defensive guys. We'll also take a look at this game as a whole and prep for Jared Stiddam to be the Bronco starting quarterback moving forward. All that and more when we come back right

right here on your lockdown Braco squad show. All right, you guys, real quick. Let me tell you about our friends over at Fandul. The NFL playoffs are here, and Fandual is officially in playoff mode. Every game day during the NFL playoffs, Fanduel is giving customers even more ways to get in on the action. Because right now, every NFL playoff game day,

Fandual users get a profit boost pack waiting for them inside of the app. Each game day, you'll see a pack loaded with multiple profit boost. You can apply to the bets that you like the most. Open your profit boost pack first thing on game day and see what boost you want to apply. The boost let you lean into your game day instincts, whether you're backing momentum, defense, quarterback play or coaching. The boost gives you more juice on the bets you already like instead of forcing you to bet something new.

Every play feels bigger and the boost make your bets feel that way too. You make your picks that apply your profit boost to go for after even bigger payouts while the playoffs get rolling. just visit Fanduil, an official sports betting partner of the NFL, and grab your profit boost pack every single NFL playoff game day. Be sure to check out our friends who are at Fandul and let them know that Lacton Broncos sent you. Okay, welcome on back into the program. Anilo Piro, Cody, Warknick, Ferguson, Lacton Broncos Squad Show.

Appreciate all of our listeners out there in Broncos country. Are also just some general NFL fans that are tuning into the program here today. If you are on YouTube, hit that like button, smash that subscribe button. really helps us out here on the channel. And of course, we also love our audio listeners. I'll put a bow, at least on my thoughts with the J-Mac interception. I've watched that replay a gazillion times. That's a clear-cut interception to me. I don't really understand the debate that is going on social media. And I understand, I'm not a Bronco fan. Like, I cover the Broncos, right? But I'm looking at this about as neutral as I feel like I could. The ball didn't hit the ground.

The play was still in motion. Jayquan came up with it. That's a textbook interception. But the bigger thing here is, and I understand that was a massive game deciding type of play, you can't turn the ball over five times and expect to win these football games. I mean, we'll see if Houston, I believe they turned it over four or five times in their game against New England Patriots. But you turn the ball over five times in a game, two turnovers is crazy. Three is like mind-blowing. Five turnovers in a game, you probably don't deserve to win the game. And credits of the bills for fighting and clawing and sticking around, but you turn the ball over

five times. You should not be surprised when you lose a game, Cody. It's hard. I mean, it's the fact that they turned it over that many times and at one point, they seemed like they had all the momentum in the game, right? Denver was up 23 to 10. I was saying to Rachel, who was sitting next to me, I was like, this is just not a good, like, this does not feel like the comfortable position of being like, if you're the Broncos, you can't get comfortable here. And sure enough, it just took a couple of plays for the bills to get right back into it. But, you know, I think those plays, they came a big, moments for Denver defense, but you're right.

Like you turn the ball over five times like that. You're not expected to win. And I think that's one thing that Denver's defense has needed to find a way to flip the switch to generate that amount of takeaways in one game is huge for them. That's a confidence booster. It reminds me of 2023. Remember, it started in the Chicago Bears game. They just started off for five straight games ripping off turnovers left and right.

And guess who kind of facilitated that? Jayquam Macmillan, man. I tell you, that guy, he deserves more looks. He should have gotten some votes, some consideration. I feel like he's going to get a nice little payday here this off season. I think it is going to be in Denver. But Denver, man, you may imagine. The Broncos offense turned the ball over five times.

They would not have won. It would have been so hard for them to overcome, considering they don't have the run game. You know, and once again, like, I don't know, man. That's just frustrating to me to see some of the narratives come out. but nobody's talking about that. Everyone's talking about Josh Allen, like, no disrespect, but like he lost a family member or something.

They were writing eulogies about Josh Allen and his football season this year. And it's like, you know what? Josh Allen is, in my opinion, one of the best quarterbacks in the world. He is damn good. I sat there and watched this dude. I'm like, man, how is he going to just will himself there? Overcoming five turnovers and almost having a chance to win is special. He's a great player.

But, man, let's just stop with that whole nonsense about, Oh, my God, Josh Allen, we feel so bad for him. Like, just quit that stuff. This is football. Like, I just pisses me off, man. Yeah. I get fired up here. I mean, the, the Bill's locker room was like a, the scene on the Titanic last night, you know, with like all the water.

The violins play. I mean, like, and I get it. You know, no Lamar, no borough, no more homes, right? We've heard this narrative time and time again. You turn the ball over five times. I mean, that, yeah. The fumble from Josh Allen, that spot. of the Broncos an extra three points before half.

It's just unacceptable. It's unacceptable. Well, Bill's fans had a lot to say about Lamar Jackson last offseason. So we'll see. It's just, it blows my mind, man. I mean, I was in the press box last night. And I'm assuming it was like the Bill's PR person. And I'm like, you know, working, but I could hear some of the conversations that

are going on. And I'm assuming he's talking to the Bill's reporters. He's like, Sean McDermott wants to follow up on his comments about the Jayquam McMillan interception. I mean, he's in disbelief. I don't understand. the controversy. It looked pretty textbook to me.

And again, this is not me with orange and blue glasses. I understand that it's a, you know, a fuzzy play to a certain extent when you watch it in slow motion. The ball never hit the ground. J. Mack came up with it. What are we talking about here? And again, Nick, five turnovers. Five.

What are you? Come on. Trying to save his job. Listen, five, five turnovers are really tough to overcome. And even though that play has become and will become the topic of conversation because after the game when I saw it, I mean, I saw it live, but when I saw it again, I think Adam Schefter sent it out, James Palmer and maybe CBS sent it out.

Immediately I tweeted that this is going to be a topic of conversation at the owner's meeting and the competition committee meeting because my biggest thing was they need to change the rules as it pertains to overtime, right? At first it was whomever got the ball first, scored. The game was over. Now each team gets an opportunity. Now what happens to the idea of challenge flags?

You at least now have to give every team an opportunity to challenge plays, whether they call them or not, because even though it's in regulation time, right, regulation has expired. You are in extended minutes. You're still in extension of the game. You now have to treat it like it's a regular game. So you at least give each coach a challenge flag.

that's one part of it that I would like to see change. But when you turn the ball over five times, man, it's just hard to kind of come back from that. And you're right. If the Broncos had turned it over three times, it was going to be a rap based on how they were playing offensively. And to answer, you know, to respond to what Cody was saying, the reason why so many people were very sympathetic towards Josh Allen

because this was seeming to be his best opportunity. And to know since 2019, since 2019, he has been on the wrong side of it. So you got to think about whether Bill's fans are saying, man, damn, we just thought it was just Jim Kelly. Now we have Josh Allen and it just seems as though we are snakebitten. Are we just in this situation where we're not going to see what the postseason looks like and be able to hoist up a trophy? And this is where if you are a Patriots fan, you have been spoiled. If you are Steelers fan, you have been spoiled. If you're a Broncos fan, you have been spoiled because we've had a chance to see this team,

this organization do that. And when you know that you are so close, your fingers are crossed, you've got a four leaf clover in your pocket. You're not stepping on tracks on the sidewalk. You're thinking that this is your year. And when you fail, guys, it's. hurts. I can tell you every single year. Like, you know how difficult it was for me to sit there in that game yesterday and actually watch it to know that I played in the game in that same

stadium only to lose to the Pittsburgh Steelers and never to get back again? It is emotional. It is traumatizing. It is restimulating, right? Hell, I mean, if it wasn't for my level of happiness, I would have freaking cry myself, right? That's how emotional it was. Yeah, I mean, what, it took Josh, or not Josh Allen, took John Elway, you know, three trips, three Super Bowl losses before he got his two on his way. Yes. I mean, I believe Peyton Manning was 30 years old when he won his first Super Bowl with the Indianapolis Colts. It's the hardest thing to do in sports. There's 31 other teams.

They're trying to do the same exact thing that you are. People think in a video game mentality so much, like to make it this far is hard. To make it to the big game where it's just down to two, even harder. to win that. It is the most challenging thing that you'll ever do in any kind of sport is win a championship. And you know what?

I started to think this is well. Social media brings out the ugly side of people. You should have seen how many comments from Bill's fans. And I used to think coming in this week, there wasn't a lot of trash talk between Broncos country, Bill's Mafia. There was pretty classy exchanges. After the game, it was nothing but classless exchanges by Bill's Mafia.

I mean, you should have seen how many comments we had on our YouTube video from people saying, Bo getting hurt is karma for the bad efficient. bro and I was like you know what I now understand why the bills are cursed and I wish nothing but the worst for that fan base I hope that they sit on the L they think about it they sit on it long and hard all off season and they steam on it because that is sucker behavior man I hate that crap yeah that's just like whatever it's terrible it's terrible man like who says it both you can Bose the bo's one of the greatest human beings out there one of the nicest dudes give the shirt off his back to anybody it's stuff for people to kind of be wishing that. It's like, you know what? I hope that curse sticks around a lot longer, Bill's Mafia, and I hope they never win one. Yeah, I saw some reporting from South Palantoneo today that, you know, Bose in high spirits, right? I mean, obviously he's bummed out, but he's a good man, right? He's faith-driven.

We know all that kind of stuff as well. You know, I believe it was Sean yesterday was making the joke about how he had learned that Bo had dealt with some ankle stuff in high school and college, and he's like, oh, if I found that out, I don't think I would have drafted you. Obviously, that's tongue-cheek and playful. But, you know, the spirits It's going to be interesting to go to practice this week. I'll put it that way. This Broncos team is down, but they're certainly not out. Nick, as you were talking about with this defense, right? Let's see if they can carry the boats and carry the water

and help push this team to an assumable appearance. So we shall see on that note. Why don't we... Hold on real quick. Clifton, my man, I see your comment. Chad Kelly could challenge him for the starting job. No, he could not. Let's stop that.

My goodness, what are we doing, folks? It's Sunday. It's supposed to be the Lord's Day. And we're sitting here talking about Chad Kelly. My goodness. It is ridiculous. But, you know, I'm sure there's a lot of people. I remember the conversations early in the year and even from the preseason start Stidham.

Stidham over Bo. Right. Like those were real conversations and comments I was seeing from fans out there. So some of them are going to get their wish. We'll see if Jared Stidham can lead the Broncos to the promised land. But, okay, let's hit a break. We'll come back and we'll turn the page. Obviously, this win against the bills was thrilling.

But let's take a look at what's ahead for this Denver Broncos team. because despite despite the injury to Bo Nix, they're still playing football, they've still got a chance. We'll talk about what Jared Sita means for this Denver Broncos team. When we come back right here on your

Locked-on Broncos squad show, back in just a moment, folks. Okay, guys, the draft pick positions are set and so many teams are looking for their franchise quarterback. Ever wish to become a pro quarterback getting drafted first overall by, say, the Broncos? Well, now you can.

there's a mobile game just for you called Ultimate QB Football Legend. In this game, you step into the cleats of a number one draft pick quarterback, and it's your job to lead your team to greatness to help turn a failing franchise into a dynasty. This is the number one quarterback career mode game on mobile app stores, and it introduces the most realistic environment with full career control. Sign contracts, train and upgrade yourself, build chemistry, and evolve your teammates, give input to your GM on roster moves, play the actual game in 2D, and rise through the ranks to become a pro football legend.

You'll deal with the ups and the downs of a quarterback career from rookie nerves to playoff drama and every choice shapes your journey. Ultimate QB is a totally free to play, has no ads and works 100% offline, perfect for when you want to sneak in a game or two on the go. Just head to Ultimate dashcuby.com. That's ultimate dashcuby.com or search for Ultimate QB in your app store. And we've got something special just for you guys. Use the promo code locked on in all caps in the game store to get a free boost at the start of your career.

Ultimate QB Football Legend, QB1, it's your legacy. Be sure to check out our friends over at Ultimate QB and let them know that Lockdown Broncos sent you. Okay, welcome on back into your Lockdown Broncos Squad Show AP, Cody Work, and Nick Ferguson hanging out with you here on this Sunday afternoon heading into the evening. We'll see if it'll be the huge. Houston Texans are the New England Patriots.

It looks like it's going to be the Patriots just based on how this game is going. But we can kind of maybe save some more thoughts on a potential matchup for the end of the show if we want to go there. But first things first. I know we've kind of danced around it. We've touched on it a little bit. But the reality situation is Bo Nix isn't coming to save this team moving forward. It will be Jared Stidham. God forbid Sam Ellinger or Ben Danucci.

But Stidim is going to be the guy, man. And I think back to his quotes in his press conference when Bo Nix won the starting job. coming out of training camp. And, you know, Stidham was very adamant. I can be a starting quarterback in this league. I believe in myself, you know, all of those type of buzzwords. Well, he's going to get his opportunity right now. And the other thing that I would say, Cody, Sean Payton has a pretty good record of

dealing with backup quarterbacks. You think back to Tick, Bridgewater in New Orleans, James Winston, Tast some Hill. So again, this is about as good of a situation as you could hope for considering the circumstances for the Broncos moving forward. Steadie. Yeah, and look, one thing I would see in those situations, you know, when you lose a guy like Drew Breeze, my goodness, you know, what do you do? When you lose a guy like, let's say, if you're the only opinion, you lose a guy like Tom Brady, what do you do? You have to find ways to adjust, right? You know, we can sit here and be, you know, sad about Bo Nix being out. Unfortunately, it doesn't change the reality. The fact that he will not be able to play. So for the coaching staff and for Stittam, it's an opportunity to go there and get to work. And certainly I think when you mentioned those examples about Tassum Hill, James Winston, Teddy Bray. Ridgewater, the success that obviously New Orleans had when those guys stepped up, it wasn't like they used the same game plan most of the time that they would install with Drew Breeze. You know, there's a little bit of balance.

What does Stidham do well? What are things that, you know, Stidham can operate under the system? I think when you look at both guys, like, I don't think anyone's sitting here saying, hey, Jared Stidham can do the same exact things that Bo Nix can. I think in certain areas, maybe. But I think when you talk about the athleticism, I think when you talk about Boe's ability to avoid sacks, and Bo wasn't sacked in yesterday's game. That right there is something that sometimes you can't teach.

Like out of every quarterback in the NFL right now, I would say Bo Nix is probably the most elite quarterback at avoiding sacks at this standpoint, sensing where pressure is. We saw it a handful of times there yesterday as Joey Boso was trying to get after him. I thought they did a really good job with that. So how do you build a game plan that's around the things that Jared can do well? Certainly the run game is going to be a big compliment of that. But I also think Jerry,

It can attack, you know, every level of the field as well. Does he have the arm velocity of Bow Nix? I don't think so. But is he smart? Is he accurate? Is he timely? I think he is those things, but it's about getting into rhythm there. And I think the biggest ally to that, look, the defense is playing with some momentum.

They got the takeaway train rolling yesterday. Can I carry it over in the AFC championship? Great. The run game is going to have to be a focal point of that, too, for Denver going forward. I think that will help Jared Stedham? But the question is, will Sean Payton commit to that? That is the question we were all sitting here asking ourselves here today. Nick, the floor is yours.

Well, I don't think anyone is questioning the level of competency that Stidham has. The fact that you've been in this offense for the past three years, yeah, you should be well equipped to be able to go out and orchestrate. But it comes down to execution and being able to handle the pressure because this is not a preseason game. we're talking about, fellas. Not while you lose that preseason game and I got the remainder of the regular season and look forward to holding the clipboard. It's like, no, it is when to go home, right? This whole dream and this idea of Coach Payton being the first coach in NFL history to win a Super Bowl with two different teams, it all rests in the shoulders and the feet of one guy, and that's Jared Stidham. Now, Cody, you mentioned something that's really key. It's key to a veteran

quarterback as it's key to a rookie quarterback on any level where this pop Warner high school college or the pros is having a complimentary run game. That is something that the Broncos don't have. We've been talking about it for two years, still haven't seen it. We've had Coach Payton asked about it going in the halftime. We still haven't seen it, right? We were told against the Chargers that was just a vanilla offense, right? No, it was not. You know, we Oh, it's a vanilla office. Wait until we get to the playoffs. We're going to see it.

We didn't see it, right? And you were playing against James Cook and Josh Allen. And we still didn't see it. Now, if you're going to tell me now with the situation being as dire as it is, now there's going to be a commitment to it, no. The only thing that I said came out positive of the game against the bills was we saw freaking Marvin Mims, right? It's like, where was that all season long?

that could have been a go-to all season long. And oh, by the way, the last time we saw Jared Stidham was against Arizona. It was against their backups. And from what I hear, you know who was calling the plays doing that preseason game? Davis Webb, right? So if you're telling me that Sean is going to acquiesce to Davis Webb and the lot of him called plays, then I'm going to say, you know what, gets all thumbs up for me. But right now, I can't really say it because the Broncos don't run the ball,

which is going to put a lot of pressure on Stidham. And what do we see? What do we know that happens to quarterbacks when they feel pressured? They start to press. And when you start to press, bad things happen. You want to know how I know? Remember, let's rewind the game yesterday. What happened to number 17?

Pressing too much. Five turnovers. Can't do it. It's also going to be interesting to see what the wide receiver room is going to look like for Jared Sidham. We'll get you guys updated with that as soon as we have some information. But what? Pat Bryant went out with the question for you. Oh, go ahead, Cody. I was going to say, you know, obviously Denver, they were, thank goodness Marvin was okay after the very first play, the very kick return because Denver would have been down to Lil Jordan, Humphrey, in Cortland Sutton.

And they wouldn't have had anybody else. But because of those injuries, Marvin played more snaps needed all season. And so it impacted maybe some things you do with them special teams. to my understanding, Pat Bryant is okay. I know he wanted to come back in the game. It's out of his hands in that situation. And obviously, I think it's good to protect players from themselves sometimes. But he was posting on social media as if he's fine.

He's going to be, you know, he'll be ready to rock and roll next Sunday, 1 o'clock mountain time. Troy Franklin, on the other hand, that's going to be a little more tricky, considering it's the hamstring injury, soft tissue. I mean, the moment it happened was on Frank Crum's touchdown catch that he had, which we haven't even talked about, which was crazy. I'll highlight that a little bit later. but he went right in the locker room did not come out.

That's probably going to, I don't think that he's going to be ready to rock and roll this week. So what are Denver's options? Well, you got Elijah Moore on the practice squad. You got A.T. Perry. And then I believe you have Michael Bandy as well. They're going to probably have to elevate one or two of those guys this week because you need some investments there. You need some insurance at wide receiver. There's no one you can pluck off the street right now.

That's going to obviously play a role for you. So that's going to be the approach here. And you need guys like Cortland, to continue to step up. He had a couple of drops, but I felt like on that final drive in the fourth quarter, he redeemed himself in a big way. Lord Jordan Humphrey had that touchdown drop, redeemed himself a little bit later, but you still want to have that first one. And then maybe this isn't with Jared Stidham, at least, based what we saw in the preseason, maybe you do see a little bit more Evan Ingram involved in the game plan offensively.

So those are about the only updates that we can, you know, establish for you. We won't know official practice status really until Wednesday's first practice. but not looking great for Troy Franklin this week. And we'll learn more about this player in particular, but I've seen his name mentioned in the comments. J.K. Dobbins, right? That's been floated out there about a potential return for this game. Not sure if we've heard anything firm yet.

He was in the locker room yesterday after the Broncos win. So that's obviously a good sign there. He was on the side field last week, but here's the thing. I'm still putting him at 0% to play until we actually see him on the practice field, not the side field. If he's on the practice field this week, I'd say there's a good chance that he could play, but also we have the temper expectations.

He hasn't, he had Liz Frank foot surgery, hasn't carried the football since week 10 when the injury happened, had surgery, hasn't had the grind and the little wear and tear of coming back and getting established with contact. If he does play, I imagine it's very minimal and a reduced workload. I still think the best shot for him to return would be if the Broncos make the Super Bowl. And even then, I think he'd still be on a pitch count. Yeah, well, we'll keep our first.

Fingers crossed and obviously keep you updated here on the show in the YouTube channel. So we shall see as it pertain to the injuries. But yeah, Frank Crum, I know we want to give him some love here real quick, dude. Yeah. That was so sick. And I was in his scrum after the game. I mean, he was smiling, ear to ear pumped up. He may have been the best Wyoming cowboy on the field yesterday, you know?

I would say, I would say he's the best one. It's clearly Josh Allen, but man, he was the first one. Wyoming Cowboy to score in the game, though, so to speak. And did you see that that's his first reception ever? Like, not just a touchdown. He said when he was a kid, he didn't score any backyard football touchdowns. This was the first ever touchdown. What a moment there.

Yeah, I mean. Nick, as a defensive player, I want to get your thoughts on this. How would you feel if a big offensive lineman like that caught a touchdown? And has that happened to you before and you're playing correct? I know back in the day, that actually used to be a little bit of a staple. They do it with JJ Watt all the time. Has that ever happened to you? Hell, no, that's never happened to me.

No, because the first thing you pay attention to from a personnel standpoint, he has a report to the referee, hey, 73 is eligible. So first off, you're thinking, okay, well, he's eligible. And could they throw it to him? There's a possibility. He's like 6'7, right? I know he's not a really fast guy. you're not thinking that he's not going to catch it. Stop it. Cody, I see you doing that.

But the idea is that you got to keep your eyes on your luggage, especially when the team is desperate. And they're struggling to score points inside the red zone. The Broncos were one for four in the red zone. And the only score happened to be, that's right, Frank Crum. So big shout out to him. And he's having a great year because he's getting a lot of time being that extra lineman. I mean, so now he'll be able to say, you know what, Mom and Dad, I'm playing more than I ever thought I would play. I scored a touchdown in the division or round. The only touchdown to be scored.

And oh, by the way, I blocked the field goal, right? So Finkum is having the best year of his life, but these are the things that you have to pay attention to defensively. And when you have those mental breakdowns, and we've seen them on both sides of the ball, these are the things that happen. we called that the Twinkie package back when I played anytime we had the big man the big man coming eligible Twinky package Twinkie Twinkie.

Man did you see the celebration though? Did you see Quinn Miners? You know how he always lifts the guys up in there. He lifted big old Frank Chrome up. Oh, I missed that. I missed that. He posted on his Instagram story Quinn did. I saw it this morning.

That was such a cool moment, such a cool moment. All right, winding down here. Any closing thoughts we want to get off the chest? obviously we'll be back in a couple of days leading up to the Broncos game in the AFC championship. New England's up 12 points right now with about five minutes left to play. So if everything holds, it will be New England. C.J. Stroud's been up and down this game. We shall see. He just got sacked on third down too.

Yeah, I just saw that. Yeah, probably going to be. More than 18. So I'm looking, it's going to be, I'm thinking or preparing for New England. I think it's the better matchup for Denver, if I'm being honest with you. I mean, also New England has turned the ball over three times. game. They've had a lot of fumbles. Drake May's, I believe, in this game, if I'm not mistaken, he's throwing one interception, had a handful of fumbles. They're explosive. Their defense is good, 100%. But I think for people to act like, ah, the season's over, like, stop it. The season ain't over. Like, it's the NFL. Stranger things have happened. Is Denver's path to the Super Bowl more

difficult now without both? 110%. It's still possible to get there, though. I'm with you. Nick, any closing thoughts? Yeah, man, you got to let it, you got to let them drop, man. You got to let him hang at this point. That's where you are. Man, scared money don't make money. You know, this is the opportunity for Gerrits did him to step up in the plate and just kind of

call his shot, if you will. Right? If he ever wanted that type of moment, a Nick Fos type of moment, he's been presented with it. Now, we just have to wait to see if he's up to the task and he can bring the boys home. But it's going to be another

hell of a game. The yesterday was a damn fist fight. It was a back alley fight and that's what you want. You don't want one of these lopsided scores where it's 41 to 6. No, you don't want that. This is what you live for. You want to be in these types of moments. So we'll see if the boys can get it done. But even with Stidim, this still puts a large amount of pressure on Vance Joseph and the defense for sure. Cody? Yeah. No, I agree. Look, this is, this is it. It's do or die at this point. Two games left, one guaranteed. You took care of business already.

Now more than likely facing off against the New England Patriots to have to come to the Mile High City. It's supposed to be a little bit of a cold game next week, apparently for the early forecast of that. What better way to come out there and shock the world than Jarrett Stidham and the offense figuring out how to light it up, but then the defense continue to put the clamps down on people. I'm excited about it.

It's going to be a fun matchup, going to be a tough one. But you know what? This is what happens. You want to go to the Super Bowl? You've got to playing these big-time matchups. Yeah, I'm with you. And look, the Broncos are going to be underdogs in this game, regardless of if it's New England or Houston, that tends to bode well for them. Tends to bode well for them.

And like I said, I think New England's actually a little bit of a better matchup. I mean, Houston's defense when CJ Stroud turns the ball over four times today, you know, some other stuff as well. But it's a young New England team. I think Denver has one of, if not the best home field advantage in the NFL. It will not be easy. And I'll say this. And we'll talk about it more when we preview it coming up this week. The Broncos have a real chance to win this game.

The Broncos have a real chance to go to the Super Bowl. if they take down the New England Patriots in the AFC championship game. So we shall see. How fitting. How fitting. Yeah. Also reminiscing the 20 years ago. Yeah.

Same a poem. Last from the past. Same destination they were trying to go to. Wow. Wow. I can't wait, man. I can't wait. It's going to be a banger.

All right. For Nick Ferguson, Cody Rourke. I am Anilo Piro on your way out the door. Hit that like button. Smash that subscribe button. Really helps us out here on the channel. But that's it for us today, Broncos. enjoy the Rams and the Bears and we'll talk to you guys later this week, hopefully with some more updates about the dead of broncos. Should be a good one, folks, and we'll talk to you guys soon.