{"id":757306,"date":"2026-02-17T02:47:14","date_gmt":"2026-02-17T02:47:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/757306\/"},"modified":"2026-02-17T02:47:14","modified_gmt":"2026-02-17T02:47:14","slug":"ex-broncos-qb-dishes-on-sean-payton-bo-nix-davis-webb-jarrett-stidham-super-bowl","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/757306\/","title":{"rendered":"Ex-Broncos QB dishes on Sean Payton, Bo Nix, Davis Webb, Jarrett Stidham, Super Bowl"},"content":{"rendered":"

Ben DiNucci still pities Stiddy. The former Broncos quarterback swears Sean Payton had a good game plan<\/a> for the Patriots. The coach just didn\u2019t really have one for Mother Nature.<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cI think if the weather was just the same as the first half in the second half, I think we would\u2019ve won that game,\u201d DiNucci, the Broncos\u2019 No. 3 quarterback for that ill-fated, 10-7 loss to New England in the AFC Championship<\/a>, told me. \u201cThat weather took out everything we could possibly do. I know there were some critical turnovers. But we controlled that game a good majority of the first half.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Pats managed one meaningful drive, right after halftime, for what turned out to be the game-winning field goal. By then, a snow squall had rolled in like a mama badger, turning Empower Field into the world\u2019s largest skating rink. New England largely played keep away over the final quarter-and-a-half of the contest, and that was that.<\/p>\n

\u201cI would like to have seen how that Super Bowl would have been had the Broncos been there and had (a healthy roster),\u201d DiNucci continued. \u201cBecause I think that defense would have been impactful, just like the (Seattle) defense was the other night.\u201d<\/p>\n

Join the club, brother. Join the club.<\/p>\n

Also, kick the bleeping field goal, Coach. Jarrett Stidham? Snow? Gotta chase those points, baby. Chase every last, blessed, beautiful one.<\/p>\n

Ah, hindsight.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf I was inside Sean Payton\u2019s head, I would still think I could call the best offense in America, too,\u201d DiNucci, who spent the 2023 season and a week of January 2026 on the Broncos\u2019 practice squad, stressed.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think that at some point, (a) young innovative mind could refresh the playbook, could refresh the offense, just because the game is trending in different ways.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s not to say Sean can\u2019t still call plays. But I do think Davis (Webb) has new perspectives on what\u2019s going on with the way offenses are trending in the NFL.\u201d<\/p>\n

At 29, DiNucci has been in a lot of those QB meeting rooms over the last decade \u2014 Pitt, James Madison, the XFL, the Cowboys, Broncos, Bills, Saints, Falcons, Broncos (again). There were good voices. Bad voices. Mad voices. Coaches you\u2019d sooner forget. And ones you never will.<\/p>\n

DiNucci puts new Broncos offensive coordinator Davis Webb in the second camp. He thinks the man\u2019s a walking Wikipedia.<\/p>\n

\u201cI just know from my time being there, he would talk to us all the time about the ideas in his head,\u201d DiNucci recalled. \u201cStuff he liked, stuff he didn\u2019t like, that people were doing. He always had a list of coaches and playbooks \u2026 that if he ever got a (head) coaching or offensive coordinator spot, he\u2019d be willing to hit ground pretty quickly.<\/p>\n

\u201cI never thought one time, \u2018Let me keep (plays) from middle school\u2019 \u2026 he\u2019s got binders and binders and binders of everything he\u2019s ever been a part of, because he knew that one day, this would be the moment. That\u2019s part of the reason he\u2019s climbed the ranks so quick. That\u2019s one of the reasons he\u2019s going to have success. I think he\u2019s built to do everything you need to be in this league.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s not just about owning the room. At 31, Webb can read it with the best of them. But can Payton?<\/p>\n

\u201cI know for a fact that Davis would like to call plays,\u201d DiNucci said. \u201cI know Sean has always called plays in his career.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor me, and this is my opinion, I do think Davis Webb wouldn\u2019t have accepted the OC job back with Denver if Sean didn\u2019t say, \u2018Hey, you\u2019re going to have a bigger role, a bigger impact, on what\u2019s going on.\u2019<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t think Sean said to him, \u2018Hey, I\u2019m going to let you call plays,\u2019 right off the bat. But I\u2019m sure he said, \u2018Hey, you\u2019re going to have a bigger role here.’\u201d<\/p>\n

If nothing else, the Broncos knew better than to let a good thing \u2014 Webb \u2014 get away, despite overtures from the Raiders, Ravens and Bills.<\/p>\n

And while DiNucci doesn\u2019t know Bo Nix well, he knows for darn sure how Payton and Webb work. And how much the latter helps to translate \u2014 and simplify \u2014 the teachings of the former.<\/p>\n

\u201cI see the way Bo kind of talks and kind of holds himself, as a fan,\u201d DiNucci said. \u201cI think I can see Davis in him. The confidence. The personality. The play style.<\/p>\n

\u201cHis fourth year, (Webb) obviously had his footprint on his QB room, Stiddy has been the one consistent (piece) his whole time there, and what Stidham has done in the preseason speaks for itself. What I did in 2023 preseason (105.2 QB rating), it all directly relates to Davis and what he\u2019s preaching. The QB coach is the one who\u2019s doing 90% of that stuff.\u201d<\/p>\n

DiNucci just signed a two-year deal \u2014 only it\u2019s with CBS Sports as an up-and-coming analyst.<\/a> Our man Ben is a hat guy who\u2019s been wearing several different ones lately. He\u2019s co-owner of the Texas streetwear company True BRVND.<\/a> DiNucci\u2019s kept a home here in the metro, where he\u2019s been tutoring young QBs in greater Denver over the last couple of years.<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cI haven\u2019t officially retired yet if the (right) opportunity arises,\u201d DiNucci said, \u201cI\u2019m just kind of tired of bouncing around to be a QB3 or QB4. At this point in my career, it doesn\u2019t make much sense for me to keep bouncing around. I\u2019ve enjoyed the transition away from football.\u201d<\/p>\n

Still, you never know. After eight months of radio silence from NFL front offices. DiNucci was at the CBS Sports studios out east last month when the phone buzzed.<\/p>\n

Want to be a Bronco again?<\/p>\n

In a blink, he was jetting to Dove Valley, a game away from his first Super Bowl.<\/p>\n

Check that.<\/p>\n

A snowstorm away.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou always hear all the time, \u2018Stay ready,\u2019 because you could get that text,\u201d DiNucci laughed. \u201cAnd that was the time, right there.<\/p>\n

\u201cAfter a week of practice, you can just tell the vibe is so different in the building (compared to 2023). The vibe has been different the last couple months. But I think the fans have a lot to look forward to.\u201d<\/p>\n

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