Bo Nix’s Mindset Is Very Different Going Into This Season

When it comes to the quarterback Bo Nix, most of the offseason focus to date has been on his health. But the Denver Broncos QB showed in his preseason cameo that he’s capable of being mobile and playing well, and without the former the latter almost certainly would suffered mightily. 

Since that was established, most of the narratives surrounding Nix have been of the typical kneejerk variety, which is why Sean Payton chose to go off on one of the critics, former offensive lineman Geoff Schwartz, who offered a tired line about Nix not being able to make throws down the middle to better push the ball down the field. 

But the big focus should be on Nix’s new mindset this year, which he explained during his media availability this week in a piece written by Nick Kosmider of The Athletic. 

“Year 1, I’m trying to just not mess up for the team,” Nix said. “I feel like Year 3, I’m trying to make plays for the team. It’s just quite the different feeling. It’s just a confidence-level thing.”

What Nix left out is his mindset for Year 2, which is more than a little intriguing. He went through stretches where he struggled to get the Broncos off the ground, then shifted into high gear when rallies were required when Nix would frequently look like a top five quarterback. 

The question now is whether he can turn that top five guy into a full-time QB. The doubters are out there, but tight end Adam Trautman offered an intriguing take on the difference he sees. 

“The one thing you’re seeing from him is he’s trusting his throws — a lot,” said Trautman. “With his timing, there are some tight windows he’s throwing into now that maybe before, in years past, it was, ‘Eh, maybe I’m not going to take a shot there. I’m going to check it down.’ He’s trusting himself, and it’s cool to see because you can always get the ball. It doesn’t matter what you’re feeling in coverage; he’ll rip it in there.

“He’s coming in here now, and it’s not like, ‘Oh, I’m afraid to mess up.’ It’s ‘Now I’m the guy. I need to get better, too. I need to trust the things that I’ve worked on in the offseason.’ This is the best training camp he’s had, for sure.”

Another change is that Nix has consistently been willing to attack cornerback Pat Surtain II in camp. This generally isn’t considered a good idea in the quarterback world, but Nix has gone there this year with a different approach in mind. 

“My first two years, if (Surtain) was over there, I pretty much worked to the other side of the field, but I don’t think that does him (any) diligence,” Nix said. “Now that I feel a little bit more confident and comfortable, I don’t mind throwing it his way and getting an incompletion on the stat sheet just to help him out every once in a while.

“He does a really good job, and every once in a while, when we get to complete one on him, it kind of feels good for the morale of the offense. It shows us that we’re also really good and we can attack the best player in football on defense.”

That’s a big change, and according to defensive tackle Zach Allen, it’s mirrored in the way Nix reads defenses now, which has put him in a new comfort zone. 

“It’s second to none,” Allen said. “It really is impressive how elite he is. The big thing everyone talks about is how few sacks he takes. It really is a struggle. The offensive line he has is really good, but he gets the ball out quick. Seeing him be comfortable in his third year is awesome.”