The young QB should be even better next year.
Denver Broncos cornerback Patrick Surtain II is a big believer in his young quarterback Bo Nix.
The Broncos are coming off of their best season since winning the Super Bowl in 2015. The Broncos advanced to the playoffs for the first time in nine years with a 10-7 record last season, vastly exceeding expectations with a rookie quarterback at the helm and with a roster that was considered to be the worst in the NFL by Pro Football Focus.
Nix turned in one of the finest rookie seasons by a quarterback ever, posting 33 total touchdowns against 12 interceptions. He also went through a stretch in which he posted 16 touchdowns against just two interceptions through a 10-game run in which the Broncos went 7-3.
“He has a certain demeanor to him,” says Surtain II in a one-on-one interview. “I feel like he's all about football, but when he is off the field, he's an advocate towards God and spreading that word out towards the locker room. When you have a person that follows that role, you just look to him in the highest ways. He's a great teammate, a great person as well too, a great leader.”
Surtain singles out Nix's “confidence” as a major reason why the Broncos were able to have so much success last season. It also doesn't hurt that Nix continued to grow throughout the season after struggling early on.
Nix went the first three games without throwing a touchdown pass while throwing four interceptions. During his first two games, his passer rating was no higher than 55.2. By the end of the season, Nix had thrown at least four touchdown passes in four of his final seven games.
“You could tell when he is on the field, he has the great confidence that he possesses out there and it shines bright each and every Sunday,” says Surtain II of Nix. “I've seen him grow each and every week, seeing his mechanics, just the way he goes about his business. It's rewarding knowing that you have a guy like that, that you work with each and every week. I'm looking forward to his success at the end of the day.”
What makes Nix's performance even more impressive is factoring in that the Broncos didn't have a single Pro Bowl or All-Pro talent on the offensive side of the ball this past season. Their lone representative in that regard was Marvin Mims Jr., who did so as a return specialist.
Broncos' Bo Nix should be even better in sophomore season
Considering the Broncos just added Pro Bowl tight end Evan Engram through free agency, one should expect Nix to be even better during his second season, especially when factoring in his added confidence.
“I've just seen it with the confidence,” says Surtain II. “I think it really shined across the room as well too, the way he's able to control the huddle, control the team, control the offensive stuff in that nature. It paid dividends when you could see the offense maneuver differently when he was under center, when he was confident, when he was making accurate throws.”
The Broncos will look to take the next leap forward heading into the 2025 season. After losing to the Buffalo Bills, 31-7, in the Wild Card Round, they'll be looking to pull off more wins against elite teams. Denver had just one victory over a playoff team during the 2024 season.
The reigning Defensive Player of the Year stresses that his main goal is to win moving forward over garnering individual accolades.
Nix's growth and development will be key towards ensuring that happens.
“You could just tell the team, that confidence grow each and every week, even when he didn't have his greatest games,” says Surtain II. “He still had the confidence to get the win at the end of the day. As a rookie for him to do that, I think that builds growth over time.”
