Bo Nix searches for the beauty behind the madness of his rookie debut.
The Broncos starting quarterback doesn’t dwell on the two interceptions or throwing for only 138 yards on 42 attempts in the loss to Seattle in Week 1. Nix takes pride in the good moments–even if those were few–with the hope of a better outcome on Sunday against the Steelers.
“It was a great game of learning,” said an optimistic Nix after Wednesday’s practice. “I think the film was positive. When you (go) back, you see there were opportunities and we just gotta capitalize in a few more areas.”
Two scoring drives on Sunday is one of the reasons Nix is confident that he can produce better results moving forward. In the final seconds of the second quarter, Nix made a back shoulder pass to wide receiver Josh Reynolds for a 25-yard gain to set up a 45-yard field goal from kicker Wil Lutz.
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The Broncos were desperate for points in the fourth quarter when Nix engineered a 7-play, 54-yard scoring drive. Positioned at Seattle’s 14, Nix completed a 10-yard pass to wide receiver Courtland Sutton on a slant route before scrambling for a 4-yard touchdown to cut the deficit to 26-20 with 2:17 left in regulation.
“Those moments were critical in the game,” Nix said. “They provided points and big opportunities. Our two two-minute drives actually turned into 10 points. We just have to find more ways to do that the rest of the time.”
Nix’s accuracy was questionable, as he was off-target on a handful of throws. But his mobility was impressive. He finished five carries for 35 yards (seven yards per attempt), drawing praise from Pittsburgh coach Mike Tomlin.
“I was somewhat surprised by his quarterback mobility,” Tomlin told reporters on Tuesday. “I thought he was highly effective.”
Across the league, rookie quarterbacks had their fair share of growing pains in Week 1. Bears quarterback Caleb Williams, the first overall pick, went 14 for 29 with 93 yards and a passer rating of 55.7 in the win over Tennessee.
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Commanders’ Jayden Daniels, the second overall pick, had the best performance out of the three quarterbacks, completing 17 of 24 passes for 184 yards while rushing for 88 and two scores.
That’s not an excuse for Nix’s performance. It’s a reminder to have patience.
Inside the visiting locker room in Seattle, Sutton approached Nix to offer words of encouragement. He reminded his teammate of the constant momentum swings in the NFL, and not every game is going to be his masterpiece.
“Bo is a student of the game,” Sutton said. “I’m sure he has his things that he took from the game that he wants back and things that he thought he did well that he wants to continue to progress on. There’s a lot of hope and promise moving forward.”
Sutton said Nix did a good job of staying composed in a hostile environment and handling the flow of the game. Head coach Sean Payton shared similar sentiments. From an operational standpoint, Payton said the offense ran smoothly.
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Nix said nothing surprised him about his debut. He thought the offense was efficient with the play calls in the huddle and didn’t let the crowd noise affect them.
“We just have to be louder on the cadence, but I thought other than that, guys lined up correctly (and) we didn’t (really) have mental errors,” Nix said. “On the road like that, that’ll save you a lot of extra yards.”
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The Denver Broncos’ run in the NFL Playoffs did not go as planned, but the season was still a success for rookie quarterback Bo Nix, who lived up to expectations as a first-round pick.
While the Broncos season ended on the wrong end of a blowout loss, the future is bright at Mile High.
One of the people who was front and center throughout Nix’s rookie campaign was his wife Izzy Nix, who cheered him on throughout the year and was his biggest support system.
MORE: Bo Nix’s wife Izzy celebrates rookie NFL season with artsy photo of Broncos QB
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Now that the season is over, Izzy is looking back and reflecting on some of the best moments from Bo’s first year in the league.
She shared the video recap of her rookie WAG season on TikTok.
Izzy Nix/TikTok
MORE: Bo Nix’s wife Izzy, Broncos WAGs & QBs enjoy matching pj party with hilarious socks
Izzy Nix/TikTok
MORE: Bo Nix’s wife Izzy swoons over Drake Maye, Ann Michael Hudson engagement pics
Izzy Nix/TikTok
MORE: Livvy Dunne drops epic photodump of rookie WAG season, Paul Skenes
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Izzy Nix/TikTok
What a year it was.
MORE: Bo Nix’s wife Izzy’s epic photo with Zach Wilson’s fiancée, Broncos WAGs after loss
Nix finished his rookie campaign with 3,775 yards, 29 touchdowns, and 12 interceptions while adding 430 yards and four scores on the ground.
Izzy Nix/Instagram
Izzy and Bo met at Auburn University in the summer of 2020 when he was the team’s star quarterback and she was a cheerleader. The two have been inseparable since and were eventually married in the summer of 2022.
Now that the season is over, Bo and Izzy will get to enjoy some couples getaways to make up for the time they spent apart during the successful year.
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— Enjoy free dish of rich and fabulous players with The Athlete Lifestyle on SI —
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Denver Nuggets (24-16, fourth in the Western Conference) vs. Miami Heat (20-19, ninth in the Eastern Conference)
Miami; Friday, 8 p.m. EST
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BOTTOM LINE: Denver hits the road against Miami aiming to extend its four-game road winning streak.
The Heat are 10-7 in home games. Miami is ninth in the Eastern Conference with 15.1 fast break points per game led by Tyler Herro averaging 3.7.
The Nuggets are 12-8 in road games. Denver is 6-4 in one-possession games.
The Heat are shooting 45.5% from the field this season, 0.9 percentage points lower than the 46.4% the Nuggets allow to opponents. The Nuggets are shooting 50.0% from the field, 4.0% higher than the 46.0% the Heat’s opponents have shot this season.
TOP PERFORMERS: Herro is averaging 24.3 points, 5.7 rebounds and five assists for the Heat.
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Russell Westbrook is scoring 13.2 points per game and averaging 5.1 rebounds for the Nuggets.
LAST 10 GAMES: Heat: 5-5, averaging 109.2 points, 44.0 rebounds, 27.5 assists, 8.0 steals and 4.7 blocks per game while shooting 46.4% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 110.9 points per game.
Nuggets: 7-3, averaging 119.7 points, 47.3 rebounds, 30.5 assists, 8.3 steals and 5.5 blocks per game while shooting 49.8% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 111.9 points.
INJURIES: Heat: Dru Smith: out for season (achilles), Josh Richardson: day to day (heel).
Nuggets: Aaron Gordon: day to day (calf), DaRon Holmes II: out for season (achilles), Nikola Jokic: day to day (elbow), Vlatko Cancar: out (knee).
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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
It’s official, Denver is getting it’s next major park. CBS News Colorado reported this would come to fruition ahead of the now official announcement on Wednesday.
CBS
Over the past 7 years, the defunct Park Hill Golf Course has inspired turf wars between open space advocates and developers.
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Now, the 155-acre property is back in the hands of the city after Mayor Mike Johnston entered a land swap. The developer gets property to build out in Adams County, and the city gets to create a brand new regional park.
In a land swap deal with developers, the former Park Hill Golf course will become a city park, and residents who have been battling to make this a reality say it is a dream come true.
“I kind of can’t believe it,” said Amy Harris, a longtime advocate for the park and a member of Save Open Space Denver.
The park, which was once a golf course where even some of the best golfers like Tiger Woods had set foot in, will now be a space where residents can enjoy the open space.
For Denver resident Mike Fernandez, it will be a place where he will be able to continue to bird watch.
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“There were a few that I don’t see anywhere else, like songbirds,” Fernandez said. “I was really trying to keep track of that to see the impact if there were development here they would be gone.”
Fernandez says he has tracked 18 different bird species near and around the golf course.
The property is returning to the people after years of advocacy by leaders such as former Mayor Wellington Webb, organizations such as Save Open Space Denver and a number of community members.
“I mean, it’s the best-case scenario,” Harris said. “It’s what we’ve been asking for since the beginning.”
The city looks to work with the community to jot down their long-term vision for the space and design plans for the near future.
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“I think the battle was really bringing folks to the table about the commitment to green spaces and understanding the impacts and the long-term to our climate to long term sustainability,” said Councilwoman Shontel Lewis of District 8.
It was all possible through an acre-for acre land exchange agreement, where Denver will trade undeveloped, industrial property near the airport for the Park Hill property — which is currently owned by Westside Investment Partners.
“There was an internal transfer of about $12.7 million within the city from parks and rec. to the airport that comes from the Park’s Legacy Fund for the acquisition,” Mayor Johnston explained. “The trade is made between Denver and the current owner for this site without any cash payment.”
In 2023, voters rejected a plan to develop the property with housing.
Johnston reassures Denverites the city will continue to work toward developing affordable housing nearby, while maintaining community jewels like this soon-to-be park.
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“We know there’s a housing shortage in Denver,” Johnston said. “We look to add more housing stock; we want to make sure that housing stock is affordable to people living in Denver right now.”
This historic deal in Denver now becomes the largest single city acquisition of private land for a public park.
“What we need to do today is celebrate that we maintain the Park Hill Golf Course in Denver for Denver,” Webb said.
Johnston now looks to work with Adams County commissioners and Denver City Council to approve the land exchange and begin the process. City officials say the new park is expected to be open to the public by this summer.
“I cant wait for the time where we can all gather together in the park when it’s really park and get to celebrate together,” Harris said.
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