Denver, CO
Renck: Bo Nix has experience. Sean Payton is offensive genius. Quarterback’s preseason debut should show why he belongs in starting lineup
Summer vacation is almost over, sunsets and barbecues replaced by August angst. Does Disneyland offer a FastPass for NFL quarterbacks?
Now that the Broncos are auditioning their 14th starter since Peyton Manning retired, I feel compelled to write a self-help column for coach Sean Payton. The aim is to be insightful, thoughtful and analytical in explaining the development of a rookie into an impact player.
The working headline: Please Bo Nix Don’t Stink.
Contrary to those who think Denver is a playoff contender, the underlying theme of Broncos training camp is that it would be a splendid idea to make this gamble work. Payton staked his reputation on the selection of Nix.
Beginning Sunday in Indianapolis, we will begin to see why. It might be one throw on the run or a scramble for a first down, but the preseason opener for Nix must deliver morsels of success.
It is not about the final statistics, since my guess based on watching nearly two weeks of practices is that they will be pedestrian. It is about progress.
That’s all we want to see. Remember, Broncos Country has traveled down this road over the past eight years — and each time it ended like the final scene in “Thelma and Louise.” Once upon a time, Mark Sanchez hinted that he might be the guy vs. the Bears in the 2016 preseason opener, but his performance was stained by an interception. Coach Gary Kubiak made the connection long before most of us, his praise sandwiched with caution. “He just had the one mistake with the football that we are continuing to try and correct and he knows that.” Soon after, Sanchez started throwing picks to Lorenzo Doss in practice like he was feeding him out of a Pez dispenser. Trevor Siemian won the job.
Of course, there are lessons to be learned from Siemian and this competition. Siemian was not Nix. He was a seventh-round pick. His story required no embellishment. He was set to work in real estate after an underwhelming career at Northwestern. But Kubiak saw something in him. And five months later he was the starter for the defending Super Bowl champions.
Siemian’s path to the job remains instructive as it relates to Nix. Bo knows we don’t expect him to be perfect. The NFL is a difficult transition because it is an entirely different game. The hash marks are more than twice as wide in college (40 feet to 18 feet, six inches). As such, college football allows receivers to line up on the opposite sideline from the spot of the ball, creating enough space for NASA to navigate as quarterbacks find wide-open receivers.
Space in college is a completion. Space in the NFL is a trap.
Undoubtedly, Payton will set up Nix to gain confidence when he enters the game late in the first quarter or the early second. Expect some inside run plays followed by a swing pass to a running back, then maybe a quick one-read slant. Payton understands the value of getting a quarterback into rhythm. This can be accomplished even when the plays don’t always counter the defense in the preseason.
But much of what needs to be obvious with Nix won’t show up in the final box score. Part of the reason I, along with many others, are pushing for him to start is because of his FBS-record 61 games of college experience. He lived a layered life as Auburn’s savior to benched star to reclaimed glory at Oregon. He has dealt with unique adversity for a first-round quarterback.
And this shapes what I want to see Sunday. A player who seems unaffected by the expectations. Someone who seems unflappable as he runs a smooth operation. Nix has been described as a bit robotic, and this can be a compliment when it comes to calling plays in the huddle — this was an issue not just for Paxton Lynch, but Russell Wilson. Knowing the plays and what he is saying should allow him to walk to the line of scrimmage with a clear head, freeing him to begin his education on reading defenses.
The Colts do not figure to employ exotic blitz packages, but there will be new looks for Nix after going against his own defense for months. This is a huge part of his learning curve: The ability to know what he sees and audible into the right plays, including those on the ground.
There will be mistakes. But will Nix be oblivious, and respond with confidence? We have seen shades of this. After he threw his first training camp interception to Levi Wallace, he answered with three red zone touchdown passes.
That showed the type of mental resolve necessary. Listen, we all know when it doesn’t seem right, like when Lynch, the Broncos’ last first-round quarterback, looked like a fish on a bicycle under center and struggled with the concept of down-and-distance. But in fairness to Lynch, no effort was made to fit the offense around him. It was the other way around, and he did not have the skill set to adapt.
With Payton and Nix, there is 100 percent motivation to make this work. And the sooner, the better. Payton has already narrowed the quarterback derby to Jarrett Stidham, Sunday’s starter, and Nix, who will start next Sunday at home against the Packers. Zach Wilson, a fun flier, became an insurance policy as soon as Denver was able to land Nix in the draft.
The next two weeks are going to be exciting and challenging. The Broncos, rallying around the young-and-hungry motto, must not only get through them but exit with a quarterback.
Stidham is the default. If Nix looks overwhelmed, if his wires cross, then Payton can start the veteran on Sept. 8.
But, honestly, that would be a marriage of buzz to kill. The pieces are in place. Payton has the resume of an offensive genius. Nix has uncommon experience.
Sunday, the journey begins. It is time to see positive steps toward the rookie’s eventual place in the starting lineup.
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Denver, CO
Cheapest gas prices in Denver hit less than $2 Sunday ahead of Thanksgiving weekend
Where to find the cheapest gas prices in Denver
DENVER (KDVR) — Gas prices in Denver are trending down just in time for the busy Thanksgiving travel weekend, with one station in the city even hitting less than $2 on Sunday, according to GasBuddy.
Just in the last week, gas prices in Denver have fallen 14.5 cents per gallon, hitting a $2.47 per gallon average Monday morning, Gadbuddy reported. That number is lower than the national average of $3.03 per gallon, and it is even nearly 30 cents lower than Denver’s average prices a year ago.
This is the lowest average gas price for this day, Nov. 24, in Denver since 2020, according to GasBuddy, and omitting the 2020 dip caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the last time Denver saw this or a lower average price on Nov. 24 was in 2017.
Monday’s $2.47 average price per gallon is also the lowest average so far this year.
Here’s where the cheapest gas prices were in Denver on Sunday and Monday:
- Shell, 7273 E. Evans Ave. – $1.94
- Sinclair, 2101 S. Holly St. – $2.03
- QuikTrip, 6477 E. Evans Ave. – $2.03
- Murphy Express, 4990 E. Evans Ave. – $2.03
- Conoco/7-Eleven, 7080 Tower Rd. – $2.05
The Shell station on Evans Avenue was also the lowest gas price in the state at the time, GasBuddy reported. the most expensive gas price in the city at the time was $1.35 higher at $3.29 per gallon.
Neighboring areas and the state as a whole are also seeing lower average gas prices.
Fort Collins’s average was $2.59 per gallon, down 7.3 cents from the week before; Colorado Springs had a 14.7-cent drop to an average of $2.49 per gallon; and Colorado as a whole had a 12.8-cent drop to $2.71 per gallon.
Denver, CO
Denver Public Schools swears in new board members, delays officer elections amid questions of transparency
Denver Public Schools officially has a new school board, but not a new board president or vice president, despite attempts to vote on leadership on Friday.
Four newly elected board members took the oath of office: DJ Torres, Monica Hunter, Amy Klein Molk, who won the at-large seat, and returning member Xóchitl Gaytán. The ceremony met the state’s 10-day requirement following election certification.
“We have a lot of staff gone for the holidays, and we also have board members traveling,” Gaytan said. “We were able to bring our new incoming colleagues together for this ceremony.”
But for some community members, the concern wasn’t the swearing-in; it was the plan to elect new officers. Under state law, school boards have 15 days after certification to select officers, which aligns with the already scheduled Dec. 2 meeting.
“There’s a lack of transparency from the top down in our world right now,” said Rosemary Rodriguez with EDUCATE Denver, a civic coalition for DPS students. “It’s really important that our trusted institutions, like our school system, be as transparent as possible.”
Torres said his focus is on rebuilding trust.
“Given the community feedback, and given that some of us are new to the role, if people feel we’re not being transparent enough, I felt confident saying: let’s pause,” he said.
A few board members were unable to attend because of the holiday. The board ultimately decided to hold the officer elections on Dec. 2, allowing the full board and community members to participate.
The district says this is one of the most diverse school boards in DPS history.
It includes leaders from Black, Latine, LGBTQ+, immigrant, and multilingual communities, reflecting the lived experiences of the students and families the district serves, the district said in a press release.
Denver, CO
Rodney Rogers, the ‘Durham Bull’ who was drafted by the Denver Nuggets, dies at 54
By AARON BEARD
Former Wake Forest star and 12-year NBA player Rodney Rogers has died. He was 54.
The school announced Saturday that Rogers had died on Friday. Rogers — the No. 9 overall NBA draft pick in 1993 — had been paralyzed from the shoulders down since a dirt bike accident in November 2008. Rogers died of natural causes linked to his spinal cord injury, according to a statement from the National Basketball Players Association on behalf of Rogers’ family.
“The last 17 years have been both challenging and profoundly blessed,” the NBPA statement said. “Through every moment, Rodney remained a light — positive, motivated, and full of the quiet strength that inspired everyone around him.”
Rogers was the Atlantic Coast Conference rookie of the year in 1991 and player of the year in 1993 whose No. 54 jersey was retired by the Demon Deacons. The burly 6-foot-7 forward with powerful athleticism earned the “Durham Bull” nickname during his prep career, then went on to score nearly 9,500 points in the NBA while being named league sixth man of the year in 2000.
Rogers’ injury led to the establishment of a foundation bearing his name, with Rogers encouraging people with spinal cord injuries while promoting resilience and personal growth in the face of those challenges. The school honored him with its Distinguished Alumni Award in 2022 along with an honorary degree.
“Rodney is the strongest person I have ever met — physically and mentally — and his resilience was evident in the fight he showed every single day,” program great and former teammate Randolph Childress said in a statement released by the school. “I’ve said this before and I still mean it today: he was the best athlete ever to walk onto Wake Forest’s campus. He meant so much to so many people, and I feel profoundly blessed to have been with him yesterday.”
Rogers played three years at Wake Forest, averaging 21.2 points in the 1992-93 season that saw Wake Forest reach the NCAA Tournament’s Sweet 16, before entering the NBA draft as a junior. He started his NBA career with the Denver Nuggets and went on to play with the Los Angeles Clippers, Phoenix Suns, Boston Celtics, New Jersey Nets, New Orleans Hornets and Philadelphia 76ers.
“It’s easy to focus on his extraordinary talent, but what stood out to everyone who knew him was that he was every bit as remarkable as a human being,” said Dave Odom, Rogers’ coach at Wake Forest. “He loved his teammates, he loved his family, he loved Wake Forest and he loved the game of basketball. He loved playing for Wake Forest.
“Every time we visited him, I walked away reminding myself never to complain — because he never did. He faced life exactly as it came and made the very best of every moment. He was a joy to watch as a basketball player, but he was an even greater man. He shared his strength, his spirit and his life with everyone around him.”
According to the NBPA statement, Rogers is survived by wife, Faye; daughters Roddreka and Rydiah; sons Rodney II and Devonte; his mother, Estelle Spencer; and Eric Hipilito, embraced as a son by Rogers.
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AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/NBA
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