Broncos Veteran Showers Bo Nix With Praise: 'We Believe in Him'

The Denver Broncos have closed ranks around rookie quarterback Bo Nix.

Nov 10, 2024; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Denver Broncos quarterback Bo Nix (10) throws a pass during the second half against the Kansas City Chiefs at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium. / Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images

The Denver Broncos are bitterly disappointed on the heels of their 16-14 last-second loss to the Kansas City Chiefs. But the Broncos have a lot to be excited about thanks to the emergence of several young players.

The Broncos played very well in Kansas City. The offense and defense both did enough to deliver a massive upset win on the road, but the third phase, and coaching, ultimately betrayed the Broncos.

However, the Broncos will be carrying their heads high entering Week 11. And one of the reasons is rookie quarterback Bo Nix, who is garnering rave reviews from his veteran teammates in the locker room.

"I'm not really surprised by anything that kid does anymore," Broncos tight end Adam Trautman said of Nix, via the team website's Aric DiLalla. "It shows extreme poise... You can't say enough good things about him... We believe in him, and he's been impressive."

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Nix completed 73.3% of his passes on the way to a 215-yard, two-touchdown performance. His comportment in the clutch, in particular, was very impressive, as he led a clock-killing drive to put the Broncos in field goal range and prevent Patrick Mahomes from ever taking the field again.

Broncos head coach Sean Payton was duly impressed, especially with how Nix helped the team get out to an early lead with a pair of touchdown passes in the first half. Alas, the Chiefs battled back in the third quarter as the Broncos offense fell into a mini-slump.

“Early on, I felt we—especially into the first and into the second quarter, [we] had two touchdown drives. Third quarter, we stalled," Payton said on Monday. "We felt third down was going to be important in that game if all things were even. What I mean by that is assuming that there were no turnovers—and that was the case yesterday—then when you look at the third-down numbers, we were good in that area."

It's hard to beat a team as balanced and well-coached across the board as the Chiefs are. With Mahomes on one side, a top-five defense on the other, and a wildly effective special teams sandwiched in between, opponents have to play almost perfectly to deliver a win. Close but no cigar in Denver's case.

"We played that team better than we have in the past offensively with what they do," Payton said. "We had some scoring opportunities certainly at the end of the half that we didn't take a good enough advantage of.”

Week 10's loss was as disappointing as any in recent memory, but Broncos Country should likewise keep its chin held high. The Broncos are 5-5, yes, but they're trending in the right direction with a dynamic young quarterback coming into his own.

And the schedule from here on out gets a whole lot easier.

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