Nix the Vikings, Sean Payton. Bo’s good to go.
Did you see the touch? Bo Nix’s 21-yard wheel route to RJ Harvey against Green Bay Friday night was feathery enough to stuff a pillow.
Did you see the timing? Nix’s 35-yard toss to Jaylen Waddle against the Pack looked more like guys who’ve been playing pitch-and-catch together for years, not months.
In his first game back since two off-season ankle procedures, the Broncos’ QB1 looked pretty much as we left him at Empower Field in January, didn’t he? Six pass completions on nine attempts, 76 passing yards, one touchdown — that rainbow to Harvey — with zero picks and a 129.9 passer rating. Two drives against Green Bay’s starters, 10 points scored.
“It just felt, like, exactly where I left off.” Nix said after the game. “I think, honestly, I felt better, I think, over time … . I think the extra clean-up surgery was good for me, just because it put me back to square one, back to base one. And I thought that I felt pretty good,. As good as I’ve felt in a long time.”
Nothing more to see here, Sean. Get No. 10 in some bubble wrap and start the prep for Kansas City, baby.
“For the first time back where he’s actually going against a different defense, I thought he was efficient,” the Broncos coach told 9NEWS at halftime of Denver’s 33-13 preseason loss to Green Bay. “He’s been moving well at practice. That’s really been the key evaluation.”
He moved well Friday, too. For the most part. The closest thing to a “test” for Nix’s surgically repaired right ankle came on the last play of the first quarter. On second-and-16, the Broncos’ QB1 found himself chased by a free Packers defender. Nix spotted the danger quickly — his ability to accurately sense and respond to pocket chaos is among No. 10’s greatest “super powers,” to paraphrase a Payton-ism — and gave himself time to slide right and dump the ball to rookie running back Jonah Coleman, who was dropped a couple yards short of the line of scrimmage.
The 2023 version of Russell Wilson never sees that Packers defender until it’s too late; the 2025 version of Shedeur Sanders would’ve zig-zagged backward for 15 yards trying to create time to make a miracle. Nix simply accepted a small defensive win while making a point to mitigate the damage. The Broncos went conservative, electing a draw to Coleman on third-and-18 to the Green Bay 35 — setting up a 53-yard Will Lutz field goal and a 10-7 Denver lead.
“I would like to play as much as I can,” Nix told me during his media scrum late Friday night, “but I have no control over that.”
Payton should follow Nix’s clear head in the face of turmoil and pandemonium. Sod the “Bo needs the reps” crowd. Why not play it smart? Why ruin a September from Hades by risking an injury to your QB1 in August?
To put it another way: Did you notice what happened to Riley Moss against the Pack?
No. 21’s juice was there from the jump. Moss matched Christian Watson step for step on the Packers’ first play, mirroring a quick-out cut perfectly and batting away the timing route from Jordan Love. On the second snap, the Broncos cornerback pounced on what he presumed to be a strip by teammate Pat Surtain II on a 14-yard gain by Watson.
Seven plays later, Moss was seen walking to the locker room — questionable to return with a rib injury.
Imagine if Nix is making that walk next week after taking an awkward hit against Minnesota. Or did you enjoy The Jarrett Stidham Experience against a team with a pulse?
Steady Stiddy’s first half: 3 for 7 passing, 31 yards, one pick and a 16.7 passer rating. Love Stiddy. Alas, he appeared to be largely as we left him in late January, too.
Why make a bad night at the office worse? The Packers already knocked a lot of that “start printing Super Bowl tickets” shine the Broncos got from running a bad Atlanta bunch ragged last weekend. Aside from Payton’s first-team offense, Friday went down like spoiled milk weeks past its expiration date, curdling the tongue. You’d hope that a 68-yard Packers kick return in a game that doesn’t count becomes a teaching point for special teams coach Darren Rizzi. Payton’s putting a lot of faith in an old friend, a blind spot that’s burned him, on occasion.
With a few exceptions, the Broncos’ reserves appeared to be going through the preseason motions. Moss’ replacement, Jahdae Barron, had a roller-coaster night that typified the occasion. The former first-round pick took Packers QB Tyrod Taylor to the woodshed in the second quarter, only to get beat by the Green Bay signal-caller on a short touchdown pass to ex-Buffs wideout Will Sheppard that capped the drive.
At least two-and-a-half quarters to forget was preceded by a quarter-and-a-half of Bo being Bo, just like old times. Davis Webb to Nix? Smooth as silk. Nix to Waddle? If Friday was the appetizer, those two could become one of the AFC’s tastiest combos.
On the hosts’ third play, Waddle beat Green Bay safety Xavier McKinney off the line, snared a short pass from Nix, and then shifted to a different gear. Then two gears. Then three. The Broncos had a 35-yard gain out of a 10-yard-ish dump.
“It’s all chemistry, and I think we’re still building that chemistry,” Waddle noted later, “And we’re just going to continue to build (that) in practice and give him the quality of reps that he needs.”
Three plays later, Nix dropped back again, then waited for Harvey to get two steps past his man on a wheel route up the right boundary. No. 10 rain-Bo-ed it over the defender for a 21-yard touchdown — the first of what’ll be many for Nix in The Webb Era. One drive, 3-5 passing, 60 yards through the air, 2-for-2 on third-down conversions, one touchdown, zero panic.
“He’ll be ready to go,” Payton told 9NEWS, “to start the year.”
He’s ready now, dude. No need to push your luck.
