Sean Payton Reveals How Broncos Feel 'Deep Down in Their Belly' About Bo Nix

The Denver Broncos instinctively believe in their rookie quarterback to deliver when the chips are down.

Dec 15, 2024; Denver, Colorado, USA; Denver Broncos tight end Nate Adkins (45) celebrates his touchdown with Denver Broncos quarterback Bo Nix (10) and offensive tackle Alex Palczewski (63) in the fourth quarter against the Indianapolis Colts at Empower Field at Mile High. / Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images

A glance at the box score and Bo Nix's day vs. the Indianapolis Colts reads quite bizarrely. The Denver Broncos rookie quarterback only passed for 130 yards on 33 attempts and was picked off three times.

But Nix also threw a trio of touchdown passes, two of which were very timely and quite clutch. It goes without saying that the rookie has much to learn from his Week 15 performance, but in the final analysis, it was clear that he still possesses the 'clutch gene.'

That "moxie," as Broncos head coach Sean Payton called it, has had a tremendously galvanizing effect on the team, especially the offense, keeping the players around Nix completely bought-in even when the going is rough. That's when such belief is the most required, in order to dig out of a hole as Nix and the Broncos were able to do in Sunday's wild 31-13 comeback win over the Colts.

“This is a tough league sometimes," Payton said on Monday. "I felt afterwards something like that happens with that adversity early on, I get frustrated at myself. ‘Am I giving him the right looks, the right plays?’ Then, later in that game when we needed it, he didn’t flinch. There’s a maturity and a moxie about him, which I love."

Payton went on to discuss how that "maturity" and "unflinching moxie" are contagious to a young team like the Broncos.

"I think it’s contagious to the team," Payton said. "When you have that at the quarterback position, your team knows you’re in every game. When you don’t have it, it’s pretty difficult because deep down in their belly they know that’s not the case. That’s something you notice with this year, especially, and with this team.”

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The man isn't wrong. We've seen many Broncos teams over the past eight years who didn't have that quarterback belief at the gut level. And what would happen?

At the first sign of adversity, the Broncos of yore would hang their heads, hands on hips, and assume the 'here we go again' posture. Those days are in the rear-view now that Nix is in the fold.

Nix operates the toughest position in the toughest league, and for all of his early exploits, he's still a rookie, after all. And yet, the standard he's set has already created a level of expectation within Broncos Country. When the young QB falls short of that mark, it's easy to overreact in disappointment.

But even the best quarterbacks have days like Nix's vs. the Colts. The important metrics are of the intangible variety. Maturity. Moxie. Will to win. Belief. Passion. Guts. Grit. Mettle.

Nix could have gone into a shell and become gun-shy, but he didn't. The rookie kept slinging the ball downfield on a day where he and his receivers were mostly out of sync.

Eventually, that paid off in the former of a beautiful 20-yard touchdown strike to Courtland Sutton with 1:51 to go in the game. That play was not only emblematic of the strong bond Nix has built with Sutton, but of the true grit and dynamic talent the Broncos now have under center.

"You start having those mental thoughts, but it’s challenging," Nix recounted post-game, talking about his mindset after throwing his third interception. "It’s probably the toughest part of our position because you know what you’re capable of. You know the read. You know your footwork, how to go through it. Then you just have to keep from being gun-shy. Don’t let one turn into another false vision and just see things that aren’t actually there. I felt like I saw the game well today, but that didn’t keep me from not turning the ball over. So what is it? I have to get back to the sideline and regroup."

When Nix has to pull himself together on the sidelines, he does so with the help of his teammates. This goes back to Payton's comment about the players having that gut intuition about their quarterback and his wherewithal to dig himself and the team out of a hole.

"I feel like the guys over there do a great job of keeping me encouraged and reminding me that it’s a long game, ‘Go out there and do what you do.’ I’m not going to lie—it’s tough," Nix said. "You start getting a little bit in your head and you start questioning, ‘Am I actually seeing it? What was that?’ So it’s tough, but I feel like everybody goes through it. The ones that can get out of it and finish the game and win and not let it dictate the outcome of the game, that’s usually when you find some maturity and you find some growth. I just have to keep continuing to do that."

On the season, Nix has 2,972 yards passing and a very healthy 20-to-11 touchdown-to-interception ratio, with 327 yards and four rushing scores. Throw in his receiving touchdown, and he still leads all rookie quarterbacks in total touchdowns from scrimmage with 25.

Sunday's game showed the worst and the best of what Nix has to offer. And while it may have hindered his Offensive Rookie of the Year bid, he'll sacrifice that individual accolade in exchange for delivering the Broncos' their first winning season since 2016, and a 91% chance of snapping the team's playoff drought that stretches back to 2015.

There are still three games left to go and plenty of time for Nix to regain that ground in the ORoY sweepstakes. Don't count him out just yet.

One of the hallmarks of a good team and a good quarterback is the penchant for winning "ugly." Even with a bad day at the office, Nix delivered in the critical moments, and that made all the difference in conjunction with Denver's special teams and defensive showing.

Next up for Nix is a rematch with Justin Herbert and the Los Angeles Chargers on a short-week turnaround. The Broncos take on the Chargers in L.A. on Thursday Night Football.

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