Open up X or any social media, and you'll find plenty of hot-take artists and some credible media voices saying they're "not a Bo Nix guy." Such criticism has been par for the course since well before the Denver Broncos drafted Nix at No. 12 overall last year.
Nix was decried as a "system quarterback" at Oregon and before that, a recruiting bust at Auburn for failing to thrive in the SEC. Countless draftniks rated his arm as not being NFL-caliber, and the list goes on.
By this point, questions about Nix's arm strength have been put to bed by all credible analysts. Even newcomer safety Talanoa Hufanga couldn't help but marvel at Nix's whip following Thursday's training camp practice.
“First and foremost, I think he’s just a smart player. Then you get on the field and you see how accurate he is and what kind of arm he has, especially at the first day at OTAs," Hufanga said of Nix. "The first ball was over everybody’s head and I was like, ‘Wow.’ You have to account for those kind of things. Not every game that you play in the NFL are you going to play a quarterback that can launch it that far. For him, he has that ability to just get it over the defense’s head and that changes your perspective on how to play him."
Exposing the Freezing-Cold Takes
The farther Nix gets into his NFL career, the more his critics — many of whom are still clinging stubbornly to their freezing-cold takes — look ignorant and biased. He produced a record-breaking rookie season, rewriting the franchise books and setting several NFL historical marks on the way to a 10-win season for the Broncos and a playoff berth.
As an alternate, Nix declined a Pro Bowl invitation this past January in order to undergo a minor cleanup procedure on his ankle so that he could be ready to go for the Broncos as early as possible this offseason. On Thursday, NFL Network released its latest Top 100 Players of 2025 tranche, with Nix debuting at No. 64, the only other second-year quarterback to make the coveted list besides Offensive Rookie of the Year Jayden Daniels.
If it looks like a duck, walks like a duck, and quacks like a duck, it's probably a duck. Nix checks all the franchise quarterback boxes on the field, and as Hufanga opined on Thursday, that goes for off the field as well.
"[And] to see [what kind of] teammate that he is—a great person and great player," Hufanga said of Nix. "Just seeing how he handles himself in the locker room and the cafeteria and all that, I’m excited to play with him.”
Beware the 'Narrative'
The Nix critics have increasingly painted themselves into a corner and are holding on to their narrative for dear life. And with little else to point to, many have been left to dismiss Nix's year-one success as a byproduct of his perfect "marriage" with Broncos head coach Sean Payton.
Payton doesn't sound too accepting of such notions. As he detailed on Wednesday, relying too heavily on the "ideal fit" narrative diminishes a player's contributions.
"It almost discredits the athlete, but it fits the narrative for those that had him ranked where they did," Payton said of Nix. "We're never going to get away from our narratives, are we? We're going to hold onto, ‘We were right with that narrative, so, well, that was the right fit. That's a great marriage and that explains any success and all success.’"
Payton was thrilled that the NFL overlooked Nix in the top half of the first round. When the Broncos took Nix off the board at No. 12, he was the sixth quarterback drafted by that point and the last to go in the first round.
The Broncos received a lot of initial blowback from critics for "reaching" on Nix, many of whom had him as a Day 2 quarterback and certainly not a first-round guy. It's that crowd to whom Payton addressed his "narrative" comments, and one can tell that the veteran head coach is relishing how they're being made to squirm over it.
Payton's Scheme is No Brees
Payton also revealed that Nix spent time with former New Orleans Saints All-Pro quarterback Drew Brees during the offseason. We can only assume that Nix sought Brees out to pick his brain on the Payton offense to give him every possible advantage he can get entering Year 2.
"Yeah. Him [Nix] just reaching out and just coordinating some time to dive into the offense, the schedule, the calendar, his schedule, and his work week in season," Payton said of Nix's hangout with Brees. "All of that is just stuff he's doing on his own. Again, that's what you're looking for."
What Arm Strength Looks Like
It's still quite funny to see people holding onto the Nix arm strength narrative, though. After all, Nix's 51-yard touchdown pass to Marvin Mims Jr. in Week 17, which traveled 67 "air yards," was the longest pass in the 2024 NFL season.
Nix has all the tools to thrive in the NFL as a passer. Plus, his footspeed and rushing talent were a severely slept-on trait coming out of college.
Nix rushed for 430 yards and four touchdowns as a rookie, and he caught a score in Week 9 vs. the Baltimore Ravens, which, combined with his 29 passing scores (leading all rookie quarterbacks), gave him 34 total touchdowns in 2024. Daniels came close to Nix's total touchdown mark, with 31.
Recommended Articles
Nix led all rookie quarterbacks in passing yards and touchdowns, but still came up short in the ORoY voting. When you look at the track record of NFL quarterbacks who've won the ORoY award, only Ben Roethlisberger went on to win a Super Bowl, so I doubt Nix or the Broncos lost much sleep over Daniels taking home the accolade.
