Broncos quarterback Bo Nix will wait another week before seeing game action.
Nix, the third-year quarterback who had a pair of offseason operations on his right ankle, will not play in Denver’s preseason opener Friday night at Atlanta, head coach Sean Payton said Wednesday.
“If we were playing a (regular-season) game, you guys watch practice,” Payton said, indicating that Nix would indeed be playing if the regular season started this week. “He wants to play. He’ll play the next two weeks. I think that was probably something that was already decided, like, a month ago.
“But if we were playing a game, I would say he would play and you’d have to ask him, but I’d say he’s 100%.”
Nix, then, is slated to make his preseason debut Aug. 21 against Green Bay at home. The Broncos’ final two preseason games against the Packers and Aug. 28 against Minnesota are, notably, on natural grass at Empower Field rather than on turf like this week in Atlanta.
The veteran head coach said the decision not to play Nix is part of the team’s plan for him health-wise and not because a rash of injuries has left Denver down to its No. 4 center heading into the preseason opener.
Payton did add that “I’m sure there’s scar tissue still in parts of” Nix’s ankle after an initial surgery to repair a fracture in January and a follow-up operation to address bone spurs and more that took place in April.
The Denver head coach said Nix has taken the full workload so far in training camp. Nix has been a full participant and taken a normal set of starter reps every day of camp, including last week when the team practiced six straight days.
“I get asked not about his health, but, alright, is he still able to…'” Payton said. “There was a play about a week and a half ago where he moved and hit Pat (Bryant). That was a real good sign. It was a real good throw. So he’s doing well. …
“I mean, he’s right where we were hoping he’d be.”
Nix will make the trip to Atlanta because he’s healthy enough to play, Payton said, but several other players who are nursing varying degrees of injuries will stay behind in Denver.
“We’ll have a group back here,” Payton said. “Generally speaking, if a guy is injured during the season, it’s better if he’s not traveling and flying. So, there’s going to be a group here rehabbing.”
On Wednesday, notable players who did not participate in practice and instead worked out on the side field included wide receivers Jaylen Waddle and Marvin Mims Jr, centers Luke Wattenberg and Alex Forsyth, offensive lineman Alex Palczewski, tight end Nate Adkins, inside linebacker Jordan Turner and more.
Three players were not seen at practice at all: Tight end Caleb Lohner, wide receiver Michael Bandy and offensive lineman Michael Deiter. Deiter, a veteran center who’d stepped in ably so far in training camp after Wattenberg and then Forsyth were injured, is out for the season and will be placed on injured reserve. He sustained a quad injury Tuesday that will require surgery, Payton confirmed.
The starters who do play for the Broncos on Friday, Payton said, should see about 15 snaps. Quarterbacks Jarrett Stidham and Sam Ehlinger, who appear locked in a good battle for the No. 2 job, will each play a half.
“You’re trying to build a callus but being smart,” Payton said. “And then there are some guys, maybe, that are ready to go Friday that won’t. But it changed a touch when (the NFL moved to three preseason games from four). So, you try to get 15 snaps.
“But you also have to balance out that you don’t want someone who’s getting 60. Because then, if you’re nicked up in a position group, there’s a good chance that on Monday you’re going to be nicked up further.”
Right tackle Mike McGlinchey said that getting some work in preseason games is “huge.”
“It’s a dress rehearsal, right? You go through the full routine, the full prep,” said McGlinchey, who is setting out on his ninth NFL season. “And it’s an opportunity to put our uniform on and play live football. You don’t get those opportunities — you do a little bit (at practice), but it doesn’t feel quite the same when guys aren’t going to the ground and the play’s not live. It’s an exciting op for us, we’re excited to get going in Atlanta and hit the ground running.”
The Falcons on Wednesday announced that quarterback Tua Tagovailoa will play Friday against Denver.
