Easton Stick Speaks On Bungled Battle Of The Backups In Denver

Your 5-11 Los Angeles Chargers lost their penultimate match in an ill-fated 2023 season yesterday, a 16-9 decision against the now-8-8 Denver Broncos on the road.

In just his third start for the injured Justin Herbert, quarterback Easton Stick again struggled to adequately acquit himself, although to be fair he was playing with other reserves in for starters at critical offensive positions. 

The 6'1", 224-pound North Dakota State product completed 24 of his 38 pass attempts for a total of 220 yards (63.2%). He had no touchdowns or interceptions and was sacked once, recording an overall 78.8 passer rating and a 52.3 quarterback rating.

Stick's counterpart was another recently-elevated backup quarterback, Jarrett Stidham, promoted not due to an injury but because of a vote of no confidence in former Super Bowl MVP Russell Wislon from head coach Sean Payton.

In his first start of the year, Stidham completed 20 of his 32 pass attempts for a similar 224-yard total (62.5%), notched one touchdown and was sacked twice. He registered a 93.8 passer rating and a 31.3 quarterback rating for his trouble.

After the game, Stick reflected on the defeat, per Jeff Miller of The Los Angeles Times 

“I’m just really frustrated,” backup quarterback Easton Stick said. “I think we all are because we don’t have the results right now. We’re not winning football games, and that hurts.”