Broncos GM explains why Bo Nix is more 'game-ready' than younger QBs
Bo Nix is the oldest of the six quarterbacks selected in the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft, but the Denver Broncos feel age is just a number.
"You look at it, it's hard because this is new, but 24 years old is not that old for football," Broncos general manager George Paton told Mike Klis of KUSA-TV in Denver. "To me the age, they're going to be more, especially with a guy like Bo Nix, 61 starts, we feel like he'll be more game-ready than if we were going to draft a 21-year-old."
Klis added three of the QBs taken in the first round of the draft — Caleb Williams (Chicago Bears), J.J. McCarthy (Minnesota Vikings) and Drake Maye (New England Patriots) — are 22 or younger and have two full seasons as college starters. Denver may feel Nix's experience gives him a shorter learning curve.
"When you watch him, it's pretty calming," Broncos head coach Sean Payton said of the 12th overall pick, via The Athletic's Nick Kosmider. "He's very efficient. You see a ton of NFL throws in [Oregon's] offense. He's making the throws we're going to ask him to make."
Broncos QBs Jarrett Stidham and Zach Wilson — who they recently acquired in a trade with New York — don't inspire confidence.
Last season, Wilson went 4-7 in 11 starts with the Jets, while Stidham posted a below-average 31.1 QBR in two starts with Denver. Rolling with the 2023 Heisman finalist may be the best option for the Broncos.
Still, it's fair to wonder whether the Broncos reached on Nix. ESPN draft analyst Mel Kiper Jr. feels he has a lower ceiling and isn't "convinced" that he will become a quality starting QB under Payton.
However, the Broncos haven't made the playoffs since Hall of Fame QB Peyton Manning retired in 2016. To end the dysfunction, Denver needs a mature signal-caller who could step in immediately, which is one reason it's betting on Nix.
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