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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Factors such as declining birth rates and families moving out of the city are contributing to declining enrollment at Denver Public Schools. In turn, it’s reshaping the district’s future.
“I think we’re in a good position, but it’s responsible for us to always be looking in the future and knowing we have to make some adjustments,” said Chuck Carpenter, the district’s CFO.
In a two-year span between this past school year and next, DPS expects a decline in enrollment of around 1,700 students.
“We haven’t really seen anything like this,” said Carpenter in response to the consistent decline.
Because of this trend, the district is facing a $28 million structural deficit over the next five years.
“We have a balanced budget now, and we’re not predicting that we’ll have an unbalanced budget in three years,” said Carpenter. “We’re saying we need to make adjustments over the next three, four years, so that our budgets are balanced.”
DPS’s Director of Campus Planning, Andrew Huber, told CBS Colorado in an interview last month that those adjustments will likely include closing down more schools.
“Additional school closures will be necessary in the upcoming years. When exactly that would be is hard to forecast right now,” said Huber.
The district’s CFO says his biggest takeaway from a recent round of closures is to make sure to give families options for what’s next.
“No one wants their school closed, but the second-best option isn’t going to be the same for every family,” said Carpenter.
This issue could be one Denver faces for years to come.
“We sort of say, how many kids are born here? Because in five years, those kids will be kindergartners,” Carpenter added.
The city’s birth rate peaked in 2005, meaning those babies have already graduated high school. And, according to the Colorado Department of Local Affairs, more young families move out of Denver and into surrounding counties than move into the city.
“I think school consolidation is very — I understand why people want to talk about it, but I think it’s more about, like, how do we make sure that the programs that are offered are rich programs,” said Carpenter.
Carpenter also says the district is closely monitoring some potential cuts to federal grants for students of poverty and language learners. He says those decisions will be made by October for the start of the new fiscal year, and cuts would have a “terrible” impact.
The Denver Broncos hosted eight tryout players at mandatory minicamp this week, including quarterback Sawyer Robertson. It sounds like the team has made decisions on those tryout players, and Robertson won’t be signed (at least not right now).
Instead, the Broncos are signing offensive lineman Reid Holskey (according to ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler) and cornerback Blake Cotton (according to the Denver Post‘s Parker Gabriel). Holskey (6-6, 306 pounds) spent time on the Houston Texans’ practice squad in 2025 before joining the New York Giants in January. He was cut by New York last month. Cotton (6-2, 195 pounds) is a rookie who spent last fall at Utah, totaling 30 tackles and seven pass breakups in 13 games.
The two moves came one day after Denver wrapped up minicamp. The 91-man offseason roster was already full, so the Broncos will need to make corresponding moves to make room for Holskey and Cotton on the roster.
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Sean Payton has seen enough. The Denver Broncos’ third practice of mandatory minicamp, which was set to happen on Thursday, has been canceled.
“Just schedule-wise, today will be our last day,” Payton said after Wednesday’s practice. “I just finished telling them that. It’s unusual because there’s a lot of packing, a little bit more than normal when you’re moving into another facility. So when we’re back here, we’ll be in the new building.”
The Broncos are moving into their new state-of-the-art facility, but the decision to cancel the final practice of the offseason was motivated primarily by what Payton has seen thus far and how the team is shaping up.
Thus concludes the Broncos’ offseason training program, which featured eight total practices as a team, four of which were open to the media. There was more on-field activity than that, including walkthrough practices unseen by the press, but in essence, we’re talking about eight sessions.
Some players have already begun to separate themselves in their respective competitions. Others have really popped, while some have failed to really stand out in any meaningful way.
By way of a Broncos stock report, let’s get to the biggest winners and losers of mandatory minicamp.
Winner: Bo Nix | QB
Nix finally returned to the practice field on Tuesday, the first day of minicamp. He was limited to individual drills only, but it was still great to see him out there.
On Day 2, though, Nix took another big step forward, participating in a 7-on-7 drill that included a highlight-reel touchdown pass to RJ Harvey. Just getting Nix back on the field was a big win for the Broncos, but seeing him progress over two days and look overall very sharp was more than a little encouraging.
Winner: Jaylen Waddle | WR
Waddle has been a lightning rod since the practices were opened to the media. He just looks different. That speed and explosiveness really add an element to the Broncos’ offense that has been lacking.
It’s been palpable. But arguably just as exciting is what Waddle’s teammates and coaches have been saying about him. Payton has called him a “force multiplier,” which is another way of saying that he makes everyone around him better.
Not that we really had reason to doubt it, but Waddle has been as advertised thus far, and then some.
Loser: Marvin Mims Jr. | WR
Mims is not listed as a loser because of any specific negative plays, like a dropped pass or a mental miscue. It’s just that, with other receivers, including Waddle, shining, generating buzz, and earning plaudits from Payton, Mims didn’t really.
Mims is a similar receiver type as Waddle, but the newcomer made it clear how much separation exists between them in practice. Now, Mims is still important to the Broncos, especially as a returner, and Payton did compliment his clutch gene and contributions in big games, but you have to wonder how he fits into the game plan on offense. That question still hasn’t been answered.
Winner: J.K. Dobbins | RB
Dobbins was his usually talkative self at minicamp, but the fact that he was healthy and out there doing his thing is a major win for the Broncos. It’s good to have him part of the daily process at Broncos HQ again because he’s one of those veterans that takes players under his wing, and elevates them.
Winner: Que Robinson | OLB
With the recent off-the-field drama the Broncos have dealt with, some extra attention was paid to the Broncos’ outside linebackers. Robinson, in particular, separated himself during minicamp.
His get-off is something else, and he was dispruptive during the Broncos’ team periods. Vance Joseph has said he views Robinson as a “future starter.” Pending Cooper’s situation, the future could be now, though Elliss will also have something to say about that.
Robinson had one heck of an offseason. I’m really looking forward to his second year.
Loser: Jonathon Cooper | OLB
After being arrested twice in the span of a week, the Broncos excused Cooper from mandatory minicamp. It would seem the Broncos want to create some distance from Cooper until his legal troubles are resolved, one way or another.
It’s a shame, in more ways than one. Beyond what legal ramifications might await Cooper, he’s very likely to be suspended by the NFL, and the Broncos releasing him at some point is not outside the bounds of the plausible. It’s a good thing that rush linebacker room is stacked.
Winner: Matt Henningsen | DL
None of these winners has been quite as surprising as Henningsen. He made a huge play on Day 1 of minicamp, tipping a Sam Ehlinger pass and returning it to the house.
Henningsen followed that up with another disruptive Day 2. He’s gone from being an after thought in the Broncos’ defensive line conversation to establishing himself as a bona fide threat for the roster.
Loser: Jahdae Barron | CB
Like Mims, Barron wasn’t bad during the offseason; he just didn’t pop, really, in any way. He broke up one pass on Day 2 of minicamp, but beyond that, there wasn’t much to see.
It will be interesting to see how Barron performs in training camp. We know the Broncos have high expectations for him, and a role on defense, even if as a depth piece, will be created for him, but I was hoping to see more signs of a Year-2 leap by now.
Winner: Jonah Coleman | RB
Another as-advertised player. Coleman has proven he’s ready for the NFL, which was partly what attracted the Broncos to him in the draft.
Coleman stood out in a major way at minicamp and made it clear that the Broncos have more than just a J.K. Dobbins insurance policy on their hands. Coleman is a force to be reckoned with.
Winner: Tyler Onyedim | DL
Like Coleman the Broncos’ first pick in the 2026 draft has looked NFL-ready. The Broncos still haven’t signed Onyedim, but that didn’t stop him from participating in the offseason program, which is a good harbinger.
Rocking the No. 98 jersey, it’s easy to mistake Onyedim for the guy he was drafted to replace: John Franklin-Myers. That’s especially true when the rookie is out there making plays like JFM. Onyedim has earned praise from his teammates, including the All-Pro Zach Allen.
Winner: Evan Engram | TE
Engram looked very good in minicamp this week. He looked like a big, athletic, smooth, explosive receiver, which is what he’s been in the NFL.
Engram wasn’t really all those things in his first year with the Broncos, but I’m hopeful that Year 2 will be different for the two-time Pro Bowler. He’s had a good summer.
Winner: Troy Franklin | WR
Franklin seems like the obvious No. 3 receiver in the pecking order. That doesn’t mean he’ll get the No. 3 snaps on an exclusive basis, though.
As the Broncos’ No. 2 last year, Franklin wasn’t able to fully live up to that, although he took some big steps forward in his second year. As the No. 3, it’s more his natural spot and that should allow him to continue to thrive in the offense, especially with the connection he has with Bo Nix dating back to Oregon.
Winner: Sam Ehlinger | QB
Ehlinger had a great offseason. He looked way more comfortable and far sharper in the offense in what is his second go-around in Payton’s offense.
Ehlinger was sharp this summer, and if he can continue to build on the foundation he’s created, it could create some uncomfortable conversations at Broncos HQ.
Loser: Jarrett Stidham | QB
Stidham has been less noteworthy this summer, but that doesn’t mean he’s been bad. In comparison to Ehlinger, though, Stidham wasn’t as good, which is curious, considering his standing as the team’s primary backup since 2023.
If Ehlinger ends up leapfrogging Stidham, what do the Broncos do? They’re holding a competition for QB2, and they have to be prepared for the possibility of Ehlinger winning it, especially after his strong summer.
If Ehlinger forces this issue, Stidham could become expendable. Stidham is very unlikely to be a cut candidate because of his contract, but as a trade piece? There’s a reason the rumor mill has been active on the Stidham topic this offseason. It’s something to watch.
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