Denver Broncos Named Best Fit For Former Pro Bowl QB

The Denver Broncos selected University of Oregon quarterback Bo Nix with the 12th overall pick of the NFL Draft last week, but they could certainly use some veteran depth behind him.

Right now, Jarrett Stidham is serving as the Broncos’ backup signal-caller, which is not exactly great insurance. Not only that, but Stidham probably wouldn’t be the best mentor for Nix given his own inexperience.

That’s why Jeff Kerr of CBS Sports sees Denver as the best fit for Ryan Tannehill, who is still available in free agency.

The fact that Tannehill is still out there is surprising. Either his price tag is a bit too high, or he may still want a chance to start. Or, maybe he is simply waiting for the perfect situation.

Yes, Tannehill is coming off of a rough 2023 campaign with the Tennessee Titans in which he appeared in 10 games with eight starts and threw for 1,616 yards, four touchdowns and seven interceptions. But he could still be a very capable backup, and he would provide a much-needed veteran presence for Nix.

Tannehill spent the last five years of his career with the Titans and had a good run early on with the club, making the Pro Bowl in 2019. That season, he supplanted Marcus Mariota as the starter, playing in 12 contests with 10 starts and totaling 2,742 yards, 22 touchdowns and six picks while completing 70.3 percent of his passes and posting a league-high passer rating of 117.5.

The following year, Tannehill had arguably the best season of his career, finishing with 3,819 yards, 33 touchdowns and seven interceptions while completing 65.5 percent of his throws and registering a 106.5 passer rating.

He has certainly declined since then, but again, the Broncos wouldn’t be requiring him to start. They would merely be asking him to serve as a mentor to Nix and potentially get some playing time if Nix struggles or gets injured.

There are numerous other clubs that make sense for Tannehill, with the Chicago Bears being chief among them. He will almost certainly sign somewhere at some point, so Denver may want to jump on him now while it still has the opportunity.