Broncos Fans Talking About Bo Nix's Boners After Loss to Steelers | Westword
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Broncos Fans Can't Stop Talking About Bo Nix's Boners After Loss to Steelers

It's only been two games, but Bo Nix's struggles have been brutal.
September 16, 2024
Choking much, Bo?
Choking much, Bo? Denver Broncos via YouTube
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Last week, in recounting the Denver Broncos' desultory season-opening defeat to the Seattle Seahawks, I referred to fans convinced that former Univeristy of Oregon standout Bo Nix will prove to be the team's new quarterback messiah as Bo-Ners. But after the squad's equally lackluster 13-6 surrender to the Pittsburgh Steelers on September 15, Denver loyalists found themselves posting about a different kind of boners — the head-slapping mistakes that prevented the Broncos from scoring a single touchdown en route to another ignominious defeat.

Exhibit A: For the second consecutive game, Nix threw an end-zone interception so ridiculously off-target that the player who wound up with the ball — in this case, Cory Trice Jr. — basically had to catch it out of self-defense.

Yes, rookie mistakes are to be expected, and they're incredibly common, as anyone who's watched number one overall draft pick Caleb Williams struggle during his first couple of contests with the Chicago Bears understands. And that's not to mention Peyton Manning, who was picked off a dumbfounding 28 times and put up a 3-13 record in his inaugural season under center in the NFL.

Should Nix develop into a superior field general, his performances to date will only add to his legend. But watching him yesterday was particularly painful given how beatable the Broncos' opponents seemed.

The matchup was advertised as the return of Russell Wilson. Our choice for the most disappointing Broncos quarterback of all-time, Wilson's failure to recover from a calf injury in time to participate crushed that storyline and gave ex-Bear Justin Fields another chance to solidify his status as Pittsburgh's starter. And while Fields is clearly an athletic marvel, he has yet to prove he can be a consistently competent professional QB. His stats against Denver — thirteen of twenty throws for an underwhelming 117 yards and another 27 yards on the ground — were hardly the stuff of legend, especially given that this is his fourth year in the league. Likewise, the other members of the Steelers' backfield failed to tear up the Mile High turf; Najee Harris only managed 69 yards on the ground.

Then again, that total seems enormous compared to what the Broncos' runners produced. Javonte Williams rumbled for a grand total of seventeen yards on eleven attempts — an amount that nearly tripled Jaleel McLaughlin's six yards on three tries. Once again, Nix, who ran for 25 yards on four carries, was Denver's leading rusher.

The inability to gain anything on the ground put Nix in the position of having to pass more than was wise — and as before, his accuracy on any pass over ten yards long was highly variable. Denver recorded just one first down in the opening quarter, and head coach/play-caller Sean Payton's insane decision to have Nix try to convert a fourth-and-six as halftime loomed ultimately resulted in three more points for Pittsburgh.

Nix apologists will stress that Broncos receivers such as tight end Greg Dulcich, who had two drops so embarrassing that the Steelers should have pointed and laughed at him, did Nix no favors. But his lengthiest completion came on a gimmick play involving a direct snap to Williams and a Nix heave to fresh acquisition Josh Reynolds — a thrilling moment that Nix squelched moments later by way of the aforementioned interception. In general, Bo looked as if he couldn't stretch the field even if it had been made of elastic until the final quarter. Both of his scoring drives ended in field goals, not touchdowns, ensuring Denver's second L of the campaign.

Afterward, citizens of Broncos Country took to X to vent their collective spleen. Even though the Broncos as a whole committed nine penalties for a gag-inducing 124 yards, with their best player, Pat Surtain, contributing the largest chunk of that sum, Nix took the brunt of the criticism. That may not seem fair, but like it or not, Denver will go only as far as Nix takes them — and up to now, that hasn't been anywhere good.

Continue to gauge the reactions, capped by a take in which a true believer casts some of the blame for the Broncos' putrid start on the outfit's uniforms. Really.

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Michael Roberts began his career with Westword in 1990 as music editor. In 1999, he took on a new role, full-time media reporter, as author of a column called The Message. In 2008, he became the lead writer for Westword's news blog, The Latest Word, a position he held until January 2023. Michael continues to freelance for Westword, covering everything from business to sports and the media; he also contributes to Jazziz, a national music magazine. He holds a bachelor's degree from what is now Colorado Mesa University and master's degrees from the University of California, Los Angeles, and Northwestern University.
Contact: Michael Roberts
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