INDIANAPOLIS — If you’re just tuning into Broncos football this summer, Bo Nix provided a helpful catchup Sunday in his first snaps as a professional.
Denver’s rookie quarterback, the No. 12 overall pick in April’s draft, took the field late in the first quarter and engineered a debut drive that featured a little bit of everything he’s shown so far in training camp — good, bad and otherwise.
The good: A 22-yard strike on the run to his left to Courtland Sutton. A well-placed ball into the corner of the end zone for Josh Reynolds. A blitz-beating first-down throw to Reynolds that showed Nix’s quick processing and release.
The bad: He put tight end Greg Dulcich in a dangerous spot with his first throw up the seam and nearly saw the pass picked off. Nix continued a troubling training camp taboo when he fumbled a snap from Luke Wattenberg and, though he pounced on it, the mistake contributed to his first drive stalling out.
The otherwise: Nix handled the huddle well even with the stadium clocks malfunctioning and looked equal parts calm in the pocket and a little amped up — like a fastball of a screen pass to Jaleel McLaughlin that had too much hot sauce.
The first drive: 11 plays, 45 yards, a field goal and the full buffet of Life as a Rookie QB in the NFL.
Another similarity to training camp: The 24-year-old rookie is a quick study.
Nix quickly settled in and led a touchdown drive on his second series, showing a combination of wheels — three carries for 17 yards, including a third-down scramble conversion and a nifty designed run — and timing in the passing game. He capped it with a crisp 1-yard touchdown pass to Marvin Mims Jr. to the left front pylon.
“When you give him a play, and it’s new and the defense has a new install, there’s a little bit of a — not as much confidence when he gets it and you look in his eyes,” offensive coordinator Joe Lombardi said Thursday. “After a couple of days when you’re running the same plays, you just feel like he’s a veteran.”
If Nix had a rookie first drive Sunday, he authored a veteran follow-up with the touchdown drive and a two-minute march aided by a pass interference penalty that showed his quick trigger and calm demeanor. There are sure to be more ups and downs, but Nix did nothing early on against the Colts to dispel the notion that he’ll win the job over Jarrett Stidham eventually.
Nix had five drives and led the Broncos to 20 points in this order: Field goal, touchdown, fumble, field goal, touchdown.
Nix finished 15-of-21 passing for 125 yards and the touchdown, didn’t take a sack and rushed three times for 17 yards. He played 36 snaps compared to 11 for Stidham.
Stidham, for his part, threw the ball mostly accurately during his two drives to start the game but didn’t get much help. The Broncos racked up four early offensive penalties from fellow veterans: false starts on Mike McGlinchey and Courtland Sutton, a hold on Garett Bolles and a taunting penalty on Tim Patrick. Then normally sure-handed running back Samaje Perine bobbled an accurate throw for what would have been a sizable gain up the left sideline and batted it right into the hands of Colts defensive back Kenny Moore.
Stidham’s final line: 4 of 7 for 37 yards and the pick.
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