Denver Broncos select Oregon QB Bo Nix with their 12th overall pick in the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft

The Denver Broncos have selected Bo Nix with the 12th overall selection in the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft.

The Denver Broncos have selected Oregon QB Bo Nix with their 12th overall selection in the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft.

ESPN’s Adam Schefter tweeted out that Denver held a private workout with Bo Nix the day after his pro day. The night before, the Broncos sent Nix three packets of offensive play installations and the next morning, Nix “crushed it” a Broncos source told him. After that, he reported that the Broncos had him throw for them for an hour and came away convinced that he was the quarterback that they wanted.

Schefter later tweeted that Broncos head coach Sean Payton feels as strongly about Bo Nix as he did about Patrick Mahomes back in 2017 when he was ready to draft him before the Chiefs jumped him. That is some pretty high praise that I hope comes true.

Nix now joins the Broncos after having a Heisman finalist season this past year for the Oregon Ducks. He played five seasons in college and the past two seasons at Oregon where had two breakout seasons that made him a Heisman finalist this past year. During his two years at Oregon, Nix totaled 8,101 yards, 74 touchdowns, and only 10 interceptions. He added 143 carries for 744 yards and a whopping 20 rushing touchdowns as well during his two-year stint at Oregon.

The Athletic’s Dane Brugler has Nix ranked as his fifth-best quarterback in the draft and now he will be the new Denver Broncos quarterback.

A two-year starter at Oregon, Nix was an ideal fit in offensive coordinator Will Stein’s zone-read, West Coast offense (primarily “11” personnel), which was tailored to fit his strengths. After three up-and-down seasons at Auburn, the pressure appeared to be off his shoulders in Eugene, and he rediscovered his confidence, becoming the first player in college football history to surpass 55 touchdowns at two different schools. Finishing third in the Heisman Trophy voting in his final season, he led the FBS in total touchdowns (51) in 2023 and became just the second player in FBS history to surpass 17,000 total yards. With his quick, strong release, Nix incorporates different arm angles to quickly get the ball to his weapons. He is outstanding finding and attacking the voids in zone coverage and is at his best throwing on the move or when creating second-chance plays. However, the Ducks’ offense was designed to get the ball out of his hands quickly (he averaged 2.44 seconds per dropback in 2023, fourth fastest in the FBS), and his average depth of target was only 6.8 yards in 2023 (third lowest in FBS), leading to questions about him reading out a defense from a constrained pocket in the NFL. Overall, Nix gets in trouble when he plays loose with his technique and his eyes speed up on him, but he understands where to go with the football, and his scrambling can give defenses fits. Though it feels unlikely that he will ever rank among the 15 best quarterbacks in the NFL, he has the tools to become a middle-of-the-road starter.

Nix now joins Jarrett Stidham, the recently acquired Zach Wilson, and Ben DiNucci in the Broncos quarterback room and he’ll likely compete for a starting job this summer. So, we can look forward to a three-headed quarterback competition this summer between Stidham, Wilson, and now Nix.

Overall, I am happy with this selection. Ideally, the Broncos would get a day-two pick via trade back, but if Payton feels this strongly about Nix, get your guy. Nix fits great in Payton’s offense and his ability to process and operate the quick rhythm passing attack while having plus athleticism makes him a potentially productive quarterback early on for the Broncos.