Bo Nix has recovered from his untimely fractured right ankle and the Denver Broncos quarterback maintains the injury won’t cause him to change his style of play.
Nix has accumulated 786 yards and nine touchdowns on the ground over his first two NFL seasons, making his wheels an important part of his all-around success. He has no interest in curtailing his running ability.
“Absolutely not. I’m going to roll, and I’m going to be as athletic as I can be,” Nix said Saturday while meeting with reporters. “It’s a strength of ours and we have to use our strengths. For me, that’s when I feel at my best and that’s when I feel free. When I’m playing like that, when I’m moving around it’s a good thing, but at the same time, I also know what it’s like to not have that asset and have to stay in the pocket.”
Nix was injured late in a 33-30 overtime win over the Buffalo Bills in the AFC divisional round on Jan. 17, forcing him to miss the AFC Championship Game loss to the New England Patriots.
Nix underwent surgery on Jan. 20 in Birmingham, Ala. One day later, he termed learning the severity of the injury as “some of the most devastating football news I’ve ever received.”
He underwent a follow-up surgery in April to remove bone spurs in the ankle.
But now he’s able to look firmly ahead and said he’s physically ready for the 2026 season.
“I feel great. I feel normal. Nothing’s holding me back,” Nix said. “I’m out there playing like I normally do and feel really good in my spot. I’m going to continue to push it and progress, and also continue to physically get ready for this long season.
“Right now, I’m exactly where I want to be for our plan, and actually was a little bit ahead of where I was last year going into the season, going into the summer. I feel really good, feel like I’m in a good spot. I think it’s showing on the field.”
Nix, a first-round pick (12th overall) out of Oregon in 2024, has passed for 7,706 yards and 54 touchdowns against 23 interceptions in 34 regular-season games for the Broncos. He has guided Denver to a 24-10 regular-season record and consecutive postseason appearances.
One of the things that has impressed Denver coach Sean Payton is Nix’s ability to extend plays.
“It’s one of his superpowers. It’s hard to sack some quarterbacks — he’s one of them,” Payton said Saturday. “That was something you saw on college tape. In our league when you take a sack, you just do the analytics on what your points become in that drive, or likelihood to kick a field goal and it all drops dramatically. So it’s certainly one of his strengths.”
Nix was sacked just 22 times last season while leading the NFL with 612 pass attempts.
