Normally, comeback wins are one of the key markers when it comes to young quarterbacks stepping into the franchise role. It usually means they’ve mastered the basics and had a couple of signature games, so comebacks are considered the next logical step. 

But Denver Broncos quarterback Bo Nix is stretching the concept to the breaking point. He’s got three this year, including that ridiculous one from Sunday against the New York Giants that included a 33-point fourth quarter. 

The “stretching” part is about what happens before the late comebacks. Nix has been leading a listless offense that often goes into long funks early on, and the dramatic difference between the initial quarters and halves and those late comebacks is causing all kinds of problems. The Broncos have struggled to put away bad teams, and they almost let one get away in a big way against the Giants. 

Nix has also had some luck in his side in these comebacks. Ted Nguyen of The Athletic described one in detail when he broke down Nix’s key 29-yard completion to Marvin Mims Jr. against the Giants that put the Broncos in position for the winning field goal. 

That completion actually came on an overthrow. In Nguyen’s breakdown, he pointed out that Mims stopped running his route and wound up in the same area as intended receiver Courtland Sutton. The pass was completed, but the play was hardly what coach Sean Payton had in mind when he drew it up. 

Nguyễn labeled Nix’s fourth quarter production “fool’s gold,” but that feels like an exaggeration. Every comeback win comes with plays like that, and the failed comebacks also come with a few “coulda, shoulda, woulda” plays. where luck takes a holiday. That luck usually evens out over the course of a long season, but Nix is clearly living right at the moment. 

Nguyen commented that Payton’s takeaway from this game should be more designed runs for Nix, especially in the red zone. But Payton tried rolling Nix out a lot against the New York Jets in London, and the Jets had a man waiting for him outside the pocket almost every time. 

Labeling Nix a franchise quarterback at this point comes with a bit of a queasy feeling. He still hasn’t mastered the consistency issue, which forces Payton to make constant adjustments in every game to protect his young quarterback. Whether Nix conquers this problem is the key to Denver’s playoff fortunes, and it’s also a critical step in Nix becoming a true franchise quarterback.