Jarrett Stidham got the start, but rookie Bo Nix got the scoring started for the Denver Broncos.
Nix, the 12th overall pick of the 2024 NFL Draft, made his preseason debut in Sunday's 34-30 win over the Indianapolis Colts and led the Broncos on four scoring drives to highlight an excellent initial showing.
In five drives, Nix quarterbacked the Broncos to a pair of touchdowns and two field goals, with a laser of a 1-yard touchdown to Marvin Mims included.
"It was a good day," Nix said postgame. "I thought we ran the ball efficiently. Made some good plays in the pass game. Converted some third downs. Got points when we needed to; it was a good job going into half with points and coming out with points, felt like that was a good point in the game. Overall, thought we did a good job, huge team win."
His final line saw him complete 15 of 21 passes for 125 yards and the touchdown with a 102.3 passer rating, complemented by three runs for 17 yards. In comparison, Stidham was 4 of 7 for 37 yards, no TDs, an interception and a 32.1 rating. In fairness to the veteran, neither his interception nor the two fruitless drives he led were hardly on him.
"All three of them did a good job," Payton said, including Zach Wilson, who played the majority of the second half and completed 10 of 13 passes for 117 yards.
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Nevertheless, the highlights were Nix's to be had and the first-rounder offered plenty to praise. His release was quick as a hiccup, his scrambling ability looked sensational and his command of Sean Payton's offense was impressive in his first dress rehearsal.
Earlier in the week, Payton announced Nix would get the start in the Broncos' Week 2 preseason game against the Green Bay Packers on Sunday, Aug. 18.
With the battle for QB1 to carry on, the largest takeaway might well have been that regardless of whether it's Stidham or Nix starting, the supporting cast, particularly the offensive line, is going to need to improve drastically to help their cause.
Stidham looked excellent navigating Payton's offense in the early going. He hit Courtland Sutton on a throwback for 13 yards and followed with a 14-yarder to Tim Patrick. However, Patrick was flagged for taunting. The 15-yard penalty quelled Denver's efficient start and was the forebear of bad tidings to come.
Over the Broncos' first two drives with Stidham at quarterback, Denver was flagged four times for 35 yards and came away scoreless. The opening drive ended in a punt and the second drive concluded with an interception to Kenny Moore, though it was hardly Stidham's fault, as his pass was bobbled by running back Samaje Perine.
"I thought we actually did some really good things, just gotta figure out the penalties and get better from it," Stidham said.
It many ways, Stidham's final play summarized his day. Going by the eye test, Stidham was solid, but the end results were ugly.
Nix took over on the third Broncos drive and almost threw an interception on his first toss when he went deep down the seam. He was able to scramble away from pressure and floated a nice ball to Sutton for 22 yards on third-and-10 to kick-start his good fortune. It was an up-and-down opening drive for the Oregon product. Nix fumbled a snap that was recovered and also gunned a throw on a screen that should've been picked off. The Broncos got a Wil Lutz field goal to get on the board, though.
The rookie was bestowed great field position on the ensuing possession and responded by orchestrating a 10-play, 56-yard TD drive. Nix rushed for a pair of first downs on the drive and threw a dart for six to Mims on third-and-goal.
"It was a nice play by Marv," Nix said of the touchdown. "He did a good job of getting to the corner and we executed well."
He had two more drives in the first half, with one immediately halted by a lost fumble from Lucas Krull. Denver got the ball right back on an interception with 1:24 to go and Nix went right back to Krull. Able to march his Broncos on a seven-play, 75-yard drive in 1:19, Nix and Denver took a 13-10 lead thanks to another Lutz three-pointer.
Payton elected to stick with Nix for another series in the second half.
Nix produced points again, finishing his first impression by going 5 for 5 on the drive to lead to an Audric Estimé 2-yard touchdown.
Nix played fast, sometimes too fast. He led his receivers into contact a few times and threw the aforementioned fastball on a screen that likely should've been intercepted. His scrambling success and quick-draw release were clear positives, though.
Overall, it was a very favorable first act for the first-rounder that is likely to have many clamoring for him to be the Broncos' season-opening starter.
Said Nix: "It just felt like it was good to get out there and throw some completions, see a new defense and ultimately just get out there and compete."
