There is clarity in brevity. Not profanity.

Bo Nix will help guide the Broncos into their most important game since 2015 with a leadership style that remains as effective as it is unique.

Nix does not curse. It traces to his upbringing by his parents, Patrick and Krista, and connects directly to his faith. And it works.

“It’s a little different. I curse all the time. I am an Irishman,” right tackle Mike McGlinchey said with a smile. “I don’t know how he does it. He has an immense amount of discipline, and it translates over to his game.”

Nix, 24, grew up in a locker room. His father coached him in high school. Sports are a clearing house for cussing. When Jim Leyland managed the Rockies in 1999, he used the F-word as a subject, verb, noun and adjective. Attend a Broncos training camp practice, and it is impossible not to hear an assistant fire off an obscenity. Or seven.

Nix long ago made a conscious choice to communicate differently. His parents provided freedom but were strict, and he felt comfortable following their example. He never went through a cursing phase. Not even in middle school.

As a leader, he does not talk much. When he speaks, he is more confident than colorful.

“I just believe out of the heart, the mouth flows. I want to keep my heart clean. There is something positive about the words you use. So I think it’s important,” Nix told me Wednesday afternoon. “I just figured out that I didn’t need to do it.”

It can be challenging in a sport littered with Type-A personalities. There are times it feels like curse words command attention, create urgency and add importance. Nix operates effectively outside of this space because he is authentic. This is who he is. And that comes across in his interactions with teammates.

“There is nothing corny about it. Without a doubt he has a real edge to him,” McGlinchey said.

“Absolutely, you can lead without (cursing), and he does it well,” added receiver Courtland Sutton.

Philip Rivers, a Chargers legend, is the last well-known quarterback known to refrain from cursing. Like Rivers, Nix’s trash talk is environmentally friendly. He showed off crazy eyes when yelling at a Raiders defender last month, but there were more shoots than anything else.

I asked a half dozen players about Nix on Wednesday, and they all swear they have never heard him utter a swear word.

“Good by him for sticking to his values and what he believes in. It’s cool,” backup quarterback Zach Wilson said. “He’s a great dude. Guys love being around him. He’s got all the Philip Rivers words in his bag. It works for him.”

That is because sports are Darwinism. Only the strong survive. Nix commands respect because of his work ethic, his maturity, his performance and his fiery competitiveness. The NFL operates under the premise: don’t tell me you are good, show me. Nix has followed these footsteps since his first spring practice.

“To me, his words have the same effect. The big thing is his confidence. You can definitely feel it in the huddle. How confident he is in himself. Even in OTAs and training camp, he’s out there playing ball,” receiver Marvin Mims Jr. said. “There’s some plays that we were supposed to be run a certain way and he would go off and do his own stuff, but it was just how he played.”

This is an example of what makes Nix special and why Denver will come closer to ending its eight-year playoff drought with a win over the Colts. He gets it. His preparation sets him apart. When he was drafted, his family, Nix included, wanted to know what were some of the mistakes players before him made in his position. It showed remarkable self-awareness.

Quarterback of the Broncos is more high-profile than the mayor or governor. Nix embraced the challenge, recognizing that everything matters. He exhibits intelligence, yet remains spontaneous and organic, like when he high-fives fans after home games.

During the bye week, Nix traveled to Alabama to watch his father coach in the state championship. There is no “too cool for school” with him. He doesn’t believe he has everything figured out. Quite the opposite.

Nix articulated this when I asked him about his leadership style, about how he balances when to be assertive as a rookie.

“My role right now is simple. I have to go out there and perform on Sunday and help these guys win games. Get them going. That’s my job as a quarterback. You have to honestly take the rookie out of it. They are looking at me as their starting quarterback. That’s how I have to treat it,” Nix said.

“Right now, being young I can’t talk a whole lot. There’s not much I can say. I haven’t really proven anything. I have to go out there and work. They want to see that and how hard I am preparing and what I do on the field. Do I show up the same every day? And I think when they see that they have a form of respect and trust. Then when you make a few plays in critical moments then they know they can believe in you.”

Nix faces another huge test this week and understands what is at stake. His demeanor is always more serious than aw-shucks. But, make no mistake, he absolutely gives a … well, you know.

“I don’t make (not cursing) a big deal. Guys will eventually come up and ask and I will tell them why. I just want to make sure that I am encouraging, trying my best to use the right words,” Nix said. “It’s how I roll.”

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Originally Published: December 11, 2024 at 6:14 PM MST

The first half of the Denver Broncos season has come and gone, with the team enjoying their bye week this week. Our MHS staff reflected on several keynote topics as we all looked back on the first 13 weeks of the season.

Denver Broncos Roundtable: Grading the 2023 Draft class

The 2023 NFL Draft class for the Denver Broncos is entering their second season with the team. Who has emerged or stood out, and who hasn’t?

Cody Roark’s take:

Marvin Mims has come along strongly as of late, with Sean Payton and his staff finding the perfect mix of using him as a true weapon. Last year and a good part of the first half of this season, the utilization of Mims has been frustrating, but if finally seems like they’ve found a way to weaponize him. Whether that’s lining up in the backfield as a potential rusher or as a receiver in the slot, he’s had a drastically big impact inside of the offense the last handful of weeks, and that makes it hard to hand out a grade because of how he’s been used through the first year and a half. He’s trending towards a B+.

Drew Sanders hasn’t played a down yet in 2024 after tearing his Achilles in April, so his grade right now is inconclusive. Riley Moss has emerged nicely, earning an A grade. He can play man-to-man coverage in press and off-ball, his technique is perfect, and he’s not afraid to come up and tackle. From the 2023 class, Moss has been the biggest surprise this season, too, and it’s been fun to watch.

JL Skinner and Alex Forsyth have been very solid backend additions to that class. Skinner is emerging to be one of the team’s best special teams players, and Forsyth looked good at center in the smaller sample size he had filling in for Luke Wattenberg. Their grades are inconclusive right now.

Doug Ottewill’s take:

How did last year’s rookie class jump from a D- last year to a B+ this year? How about three parts Riley Moss and one part Marvin Mims – that’s how. Turns out that Paton and Payton were dead on with their assessment of Moss, who apparently just needed a season to get healthy. Nothing told us more about Moss’ value than when he wasn’t in the lineup following a knee injury; the defense didn’t even look the same. And Mims, while obviously talented even last season, has been utilized more – and better – than he was a season ago. The jump from these two guys alone moves the class up at least a couple of grades.

Rich Kurtzman’s take:

It’s still too early to fully evaluate 2023’s class, but I’d give it a D. Moss seems to be the one starter out of a tiny class. Mims looks like the one guy who could also become a bigger impact player, but he’s mostly disappointed to this point, too.

Shawn Drotar’s take:

Incomplete. Speedy wideout Marvin Mims, Jr. was an All-Pro as a rookie returner, but is only now starting to carve out a role in the Broncos’ offense. Rangy linebacker Drew Sanders has battled injuries that have limited the third-rounder’s development; what role he plays for the Broncos going forward is still uncertain. Sixth-round safety J.L. Skinner appears to be an adequate backup, as is seventh-round center Alex Forsyth (field goals notwithstanding). Fortunately for the Broncos, third-round cornerback Riley Moss looks like a star… if he can stay on the field. Injuries have limited him in both of his first two NFL seasons.

Rashaan Salaam would want the company.

“He would love that,” Khalada Salaam-Alaji, mother of the late CU Buffs icon told me Tuesday when I asked about Travis Hunter and the 2024 Heisman Trophy. “He would love that.

“These young men, who weren’t even born when he was playing football — he’s old enough to be their father. He would love to be a part of that. I know Rashaan would really love this. I hope it happens. It’s amazing.”

Some 2,700 miles and a coast away from Manhattan, Salaam-Alaji on Saturday will be rooting in San Diego for Hunter to become CU’s second member of the Heisman fraternity. Because nobody would be pulling harder for #HE12MAN, the Buffs’ two-way star, than her late son.

“He’s in Colorado,” Khalada said of Salaam, the ex-CU tailback whose Heisman victory (Dec. 10, 1994) celebrated its 30th anniversary on Tuesday. “His remains are in Boulder. His spirit’s there. He would really want something good to happen in Boulder.”

Khalada continues to honor her son’s legacy, and his memory, as a driver for good. She represented Rashaan when he was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2022 and into the California High School Hall of Fame at the Rose Bowl last year.

These days, Salaam-Alaji is the wind beneath the wings of The Rashaan Salaam Foundation, a non-profit committed to “help children, adolescents, young adults, and athletes navigate through our complex and mentally challenging society.” The foundation held a fundraiser in Atlanta earlier this month in honor of Rashaan’s 50th birthday (Oct. 4).

“What we’re hoping is we can use all the wonderful recognition in his memory that we’ve received since he’s been gone, and do something with it,” Khalada said. “And we want the foundation to be generational. We want it to be here long after I’m gone.”

Salaam took his own life in Boulder on Dec. 5, 2016. He was 42.

“It’s so difficult this week,” Salaam-Alaji said. “It’s so difficult.”

For most Buffs fans over 35, Salaam still runs to daylight in their hearts. The minute he de-planed in Broomfield, Deion Sanders stuck a giant CU pin on the national map again. If you happened to join Buffs Nation on Dec. 3, 2022, do yourself a favor: Go to YouTube.com, or Google. Then type “Rashaan Salaam, highlights.”

Watch him juke one Miami defender, then drag two more Hurricanes with him into the end zone. Watch him fly like Superman into the end zone at Michigan Stadium. Watch him hurdle Oklahoma defenders. Watch him shatter about 486 Kansas State arm tackles. Watch him rumble for 134 yards at Nebraska. Just for fun.

Peak Salaam was the complete package, a 6-foot-1, 215-pound hammer who ran with Leroy Kelly’s anger and Gene Kelly’s grace.

In 1994, he became just the fourth Football Bowl Subdivision player to rack up at least 2,000 rushing yards before a bowl game. He led the country in rushing, scoring (24 TDs) and all-purpose yardage. His 141 yards at Michigan were the most by any opponent in Ann Arbor since Archie Griffin’s 163 back in 1973. His 11-1 Buffs faced six ranked teams over the season’s first eight weeks. Salaam averaged 173.5 rushing yards against that dirty half-dozen.

And yet the play he was proudest of came on Sept. 24, 1994, at the Big House — the block in the backfield that freed up teammate Kordell Stewart to throw the “Miracle at Michigan” to Michael Westbrook. On a team of superstars, Salaam was a bashful giant, deferential and unselfish to the last.

“I would tell (Hunter’s family) to not be fearful,” Khalada continued. “To enjoy the moment. And to help him with his finances, to make sure that (that’s taken care of) … football’s not going to last forever.

“Just enjoy it. Enjoy it. Try not to ego-trip it too hard, with the Heisman … stay connected to the God within. In the long run, that’s all I would say. Take care of yourself. Enjoy it. But protect your finances if you can.

“I appreciate it now more so than I did when it was happening.”

Her son’s relationship with the Heisman, and the expectations that came with it, became complicated. Over the 22 years after winning the award, the ex-Buffs great returned to the Heisman ceremony, as a member of college football’s most elite fraternity, just five more times. This week, like the Pro Football Hall of Fame induction ceremony in Canton, Ohio, is a homecoming weekend for past winners, a chance to share in the spotlight again, to catch up.

Salaam wanted to move on. He sold his Heisman ring for roughly $8,000 in 2011; he sold his statue three years later. In 2016, it fetched $399,608 in an online auction, raising funds to CTE-related medical research in Salaam’s memory.

When the soft-spoken Buffs back attended Heisman festivities as a finalist, one of his running buddies in New York was a gregarious Miami Hurricane defensive lineman named Warren Sapp.

Three decades later, that same Sapp is now a member of the CU football family, having joined Sanders’ coaching staff as a senior quality control analyst.

Sometimes, history can tie things together with wonderful, unexpected bows.

“He would love (Hunter),” Salaam-Alaji said. “There would be no competition. It would be only encouragement. And being proud. That’s who Rashaan was.”

•••

For more information on The Rashaan Salaam Foundation, or to donate, visit rashaansalaamfoundation.org

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Originally Published: December 10, 2024 at 7:29 PM MST