Broncos QB Bo Nix Makes Stunning Debut on NFL Top 100 List

The 12th overall pick of last year's draft, Nix completed 66.3 percent of his passes for 3,775 yards, 29 touchdowns, and 12 interceptions as a rookie — with another 430 yards and four scores on the ground — breaking multiple league and franchise records while leading the club to its first playoff appearance in nearly a decade.

Nix, who twice earned AFC Offensive Player of the Week honors, becomes the first Broncos field general since Peyton Manning to crack the Top 100 list. He's also only the second current Denver player to make the cut, joining defensive lineman Zach Allen (No. 90).

The Broncos set out to upgrade Nix's supporting cast this offseason, bringing in running backs JK Dobbins and RJ Harvey, wide receiver Pat Bryant, and tight end Evan Engram. As such, expectations for the former Oregon star have been heightened.

What was once the ceiling is now the floor.

"Bo, he's even more confident going into this year," cornerback Patrick Surtain II told reporters Tuesday. "Obviously with Year 1 under his belt, a lot more confidence rises upon that. The team, we have Bo’s back through the whole way through. He’s a tremendous leader out there, and a tremendous player. This year he's going to make a lot of noise, and we're looking forward to seeing what he does and his success moving forward.”

“Certainly the experience of playing football games in this league is very, very valuable. Now he knows what it feels like. He knows what it looks like. He knows, obviously, that he is very good at it, and I think that just gives him the hunger for more," echoed right tackle Mike McGlinchey. "I think that's what's really impressive about Bo is his competitive nature of just trying to get the most out of himself every single day. That ability to stack those days is why he improved so vastly and so fast as the season went on last year. I only expect the same things from him this year."

Barring any drastic developments, Nix's name should rest comfortably on the Top 100 list for the foreseeable future. The talk of a potential sophomore slump is just that — talk. The conjecture of opponents suddenly adjusting to and combating Nix's play is just that — conjecture.

"I hear that a lot," Broncos head coach Sean Payton said Wednesday. "Look, we're all watching the film throughout the year, so there's not this one off-season where there's a group of defensive coaches sitting in a room for two weeks looking at Bo Nix film. I mean the study and looking at the system, the players in the system—I've heard that, and I kind of cringe when I hear it."