Denver Broncos coach Sean Payton said Nix was "doing great" in his latest update...aside from that ankle procedure.
Denver Broncos quarterback Bo Nix had a recent visit with the surgeon who repaired his broken ankle, and according to Charean Williams of Pro Football Talk via Ian Raport of NFL Network, Dr. Norman Waldrop also did what was described as an “expected clean-up” procedure on Nix’s right ankle.
But coach Sean Payton left that significant detail out of his latest update on Nix’s ankle, and he literally used a variation on the “nothing to see here” phrase, which adds an element of comedy to this situation.
Nix fractured his ankle in the AFC Championship game back in January, and before his surgery on Jan. 20 he described the injury as a “simple fracture.” That runs counter to other reports that described a more complicated medical situation, and Payton even said that Nix had a “propensity” for this kind of injury.
The Broncos are hoping this situation will just quietly go away, but that’s not going to happen now. Nix never mentioned a follow-up procedure, and Denver owner Greg Penner had to step in to keep the back and forth between his coach and quarterback from getting out of hand, saying that he was confident that Nix would “participate” in OTAs given that Nix was “ahead of schedule” in his rehab, according to Williams.
Now that timeline is changing. According to Rapaport, the Broncos will be “conservative” with their approach to Nix’s participation, which sounds like he’ll be a meetings-only attendee. Payton said Nix is “doing great,” and he added that “we’re excited about his progress,” in a report by Parker Gabriel of the Denver Post.
This latest round of commentary makes this a situation to watch going forward. Nix will almost certainly be invisible to the media and fan base during OTAs, unless the Broncos decide to release a short video of the quarterback doing something athletic that makes him look like a full participant.
There are several developments to watch here. One is whether the Broncos make any other quarterback moves between now and the start of camp, as even a minor move might be an indication that someone’s status is changing.
The next move to monitor is what happens when the Broncos report to camp, as that should give us a chance to see if Nix is actually leading the offense and preparing in earnest for a Week 1 start. Given that this is a medical situation, the word to the wise is don’t sleep on what's happening here.