Broncos QB Bo Nix, HC Sean Payton Share Approach to Facing Seahawks

What is the Denver Broncos' offensive approach to beating the Seattle Seahawks?

Aug 18, 2024; Denver, Colorado, USA; Denver Broncos quarterback Bo Nix (10) scrambles with the ball in the first quarter against the Green Bay Packers at Empower Field at Mile High. / Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images

During the preseason, Denver Broncos rookie quarterback Bo Nix looked quite comfortable running Sean Payton's offense. Nix serving as Denver's starting quarterback Week 1 in Seattle presents formidable challenges. 

Payton is thus keying on exactly how the Seattle Seahawks' new head coach Mike Macdonald will choose to attack his rookie's NFL debut. Macdonald was hired after a successful stint at the defensive coordinator of the Baltimore Ravens.

"They give you a lot of looks," Payton said about Seattle on Wednesday. "They'll play their odd front, and they'll move that around. They've done a great job. I think in his last two years, [his defenses] have been second in the league in takeaways. So they're an opportunist, aggressive defense. The challenge this week is you have the Ravens element when we're looking at defensive film and yet looking at the Seattle personnel."

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Just how self-assured and calm Nix operates when he's getting his guys in and out of the huddle will be crucial in the hostile environment of Lumen Field. The rookie has already exhibited a calm authority that has stood out to several of his veteran teammates. The contrast with Russell Wilson's failures of last year has been incredibly stark.

Establishing such a firm grip on the offense game plan has been a collaborative effort that has gone extremely well up to this point. The hard yards have put Nix in a position where his knowledge of the offense gives him a solid base to work with, which helps when things inevitably start to go wrong.

"Base down first day is tough," Nix conceded when he spoke on Wednesday. "[It is] a lot of thinking out there on the field... Right now as a rookie, I don't have a whole lot of say. I just go in there and do what I'm told, but I will give it to the coaches, from Coach Payton down. They've been very intrigued with what I've been good at in the past and my strengths. They're trying to play to those. At the same time, he's been doing this for almost 20 years so he's going to be doing what he's comfortable with. It's my job to go out there and execute what he calls."

Keeping Nix calm when the bullets start flying is a fundamental part of Payton's overall thinking, and for good reason. Thankfully, Payton has a pretty good in-game feel for things — a knack he picked up over the years — especially for quickly taking a young quarterback's temperature.

"Part of that is up to us relative to how you begin a game," Payton said. "Really it was no different than those first 10 plays at Indianapolis. They come, everyone's going to have them. I think even for guys that are returning starters, [it's the] same thing when you start the season. getting to the things that these guys know well and allowing them to play fast, I think that's important."

Payton is clearly conducting the orchestra. Nix is well aware of that as he faithfully follows the game plan. That being said, road games have a nasty habit of forcing teams into making a raft of adjustments on the fly; some come from within the playbook, and others arrive from working it out yourself.

Either way, Nix likes his chances of hitting a nasty curveball, irrespective of his inexperience. 

"It could be both. I think you can adjust on the fly if they're doing something different," Nix said. "Sometimes it's just straight-up execution. Sometimes you're not executing to the standard that you should be executing at. Other times it's just some juice and energy. You just have to bring it a little bit better. I think the good teams and the successful teams, they found out whatever it is and they're able to go out there and adjust."

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