Mile High Report
The Broncos rookie quarterback held his own against Patrick Mahomes in their first of many matchups to come.
Broncos rookie quarterback Bo Nix has been impressive this season, but all eyes were on him this Sunday to see how he would fair against Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs at Arrowhead. Would he look overmatched, overwhelmed, and struggle in the tough environment against the undefeated reigning Super Bowl Champions?
He did not. He held his own and arguably, outperformed Mahomes on the field.
Sure, the final score fell in the Chiefs' favor in heartbreaking fashion, but Broncos Country has to come out of this game encouraged about their rookie quarterback. He more than held his own against the Chiefs at Arrowhead while arguably outplaying Patrick Mahomes.
Bo Nix: 22-30 (73.3 CMP%) for 215 yards, 2 TDs, QB rating of 115.3 and a QBR of 69.3(6th best in week 10)
Patrick Mahomes: 28-42 (66.7 CMP %) for 266 yards, 1 TD, QB rating of 90.3, and a QBR of 61.7 (10th best in week 10)
If the Broncos blocked that field goal attempt better and Wil Lutz made that chip-shot field goal, the narrative around Nix and the team would be much different. Instead of talking about Nix leading a game-winning field goal drive at Arrowhead vs. Mahomes and the Chiefs, we’re talking about Alex Forsyth on his ass and a crushing defeat to the Chiefs.
While the game resulted in a loss, we have to be encouraged about how Nix performed. The moment was not too big for him and played well against a tough defense and in a tough environment against arguably one of the best quarterbacks of all-time.
After the game, head coach Sean Payton told reporters that he thought Nix “played well. Gutsy” vs. the Chiefs. He led the Broncos to two quick touchdowns in the first half before having some struggles in the second half. The Chiefs defense is a tough unit and started bringing the heat and getting to Nix. However, he would lead the offense down on the final drive and complete a critical third down pass to Courtland Sutton that allowed the Broncos to milk the clock to just one second left. He got the team in position to come away with the upset victory, but as we know, shit happened.
A day later, the loss still stings, but the silver lining here is the continued growth and improving play by rookie quarterback Bo Nix. The Broncos proved they could matchup against one of the best teams in the AFC on the road and were just a few mistakes away from coming away with the win.
This is the first of many matchups between the two quarterbacks and hopefully, we see Nix outperform Mahomes more moving forward but coming away with the win next time. At the end of the day, we have to be encouraged of the direction of this team and the play of our rookie quarterback.
