The Denver Broncos are in an exceedingly good position after the main acquisitions of free agency and with the NFL draft on the horizon. After the disastrous tenure of former head coach Nathaniel Hackett and the flub of the trade and contract of lemon quarterback Russell Wilson, it’s not unreasonable that many across the league the Broncos to be further in the depths of despair the organization had found itself in since Peyton Manning retired nearly a decade ago.
However, just like a team’s time at the top can be over in the blink of an eye, an organization floundering in the basement can be temporary, punctuated by a rocket up into the upper echelon of the league. The common phrase of the NFL standing for “Not For Long” cuts both ways. A team’s fortunes can turn around exceptionally fast, especially if the right head coach and quarterback are found.
The Broncos have apparently done just that. According to NFL.com’s Tom Blair, the Broncos drafting Bo Nix at No. 12 overall last year was lauded as the “best QB guru flex” af any quarterback additions of the previous five seasons.
"This is a bit odd to type, but I will proceed anyway: Heading into the 2024 NFL Draft, Sean Payton hadn't spun true 'QB guru' magic since he shepherded Drew Brees' evolution into a future Hall of Famer with the Saints. The one-year marriage with Russell Wilson in 2023 was a disaster. Things could still go sidewise with Nix, but for now, he helped put Payton and the Broncos back on solid ground with a largely positive rookie season," Blair wrote.
The NFL.com doesn't stop there.
"Was Nix 'overdrafted' as the sixth QB off the board at No. 12 overall? Maybe. That won't matter if Payton successfully molds Nix into a consistent winner for Denver. It is well worth it for a team to jump at a QB it has a vision for, regardless of draft slot. Like the Falcons with Penix, Payton and the Broncos are surely much better off being able to pin their future on Nix with some degree of confidence instead of searching for QB help in today's market," Blair wrote.
Despite the hand-wringing surrounding Denver trading a first-round pick and Day 2 capital for Payton's coaching rights, especially from an organization already in the red with draft picks following the horrendous Wilson trade, in just two seasons, the team's status of perennially picking in the top 10 of the draft has shifted dramatically into a being a dark horse contender in the AFC. To put it bluntly, Payton has worked football miracles in just two short seasons.
Not known as a humble individual in league circles, what Payton has done in just three offseasons in Denver, overcoming the dead-cap hit and lack of top-100 draft picks to have the team on the doorstep of toppling the Kansas City Chiefs is remarkable. Can it be called arrogance if Payton has done exactly that to date in Denver? The confidence at this point is well-earned.
Of course, Payton can't get it done on his own, and as he stated at the NFL Combine prior to the 2024 draft that he and the Broncos were “better than others” at evaluating quarterbacks and not “getting on the NFL train” when it comes to the offseason groupthink surrounding prospects and signal-callers, it looks like he will be proven right once again.
After all, Nix put up a remarkable season for a quarterback many believe was "overdrafted" at 12. If anything, given the demand at the position, Nix was vastly underdrafted with the gift of hindsight.
Just how great of a quarterback Nix can become is still a question. The Broncos were lacking in weaponry last season around him, but they did support him with arguably the singularly best pass-protecting offensive line in football. Further, the scheme itself helped limit true dropback passes from Nix.
The ceiling of the pass game and Nix himself will be greatly dependent on how much growth he can show in this area as a quarterback going forward. He looks like a fantastic quarterback at a great value on his rookie contract.
Can Nix elevate his game to be in the conversation of the top 10 quarterbacks in the league? Like Gary Kubiak used to say, Broncos Country is "fixin' to find out."
Regardless, Nix at 12 is rightfully one of the best shot calls and fits by any team in recent memory. The Broncos landed a much-needed face of the franchise at the position to help the team climb out of dead-cap hell following the release of Wilson and landing a potential franchise quarterback a year before the widely reported uninspiring signal-callers in the 2025 draft class.
In just three offseasons, and one year removed from purportedly having one of the worst rosters and teams in football, the Broncos have emerged as a sleeping giant and a roster not to be trifled with going forward. Thanks to the vision of an offensive mastermind and quarterback guru and Payton's defiance of league-wide groupthink surrounding Nix, the Broncos have themselves a quarterback with boundless aspirations in 2025 and beyond.
