3 stats proving Bo Nix is better than his detractors dreamed he could be

If you've been watching the Denver Broncos this season, it would be easy to state that rookie quarterback Bo Nix has looked the part. Of course, Nix has had his share of bad throws (just like literally every NFL quarterback) and he's made plenty of rookie mistakes, but he's also exceeded expectations in a lot of ways.

In fact, I would go so far as to say that Nix has made a lot of people just downright look bad.

Nix has been very good so far this season even if things haven't been perfect, and three key statistics really help paint the picture of just how much he's not only improved over the course of the season, but how good he's actually been on the whole.

3 stats that prove Broncos QB Bo Nix is way better than the critics say

1. Bo Nix is tied for 12th in the NFL with 13 total touchdowns

This one is pretty straightforward, but Nix has really made a lot of strides in the playmaking department as the season has gone along. He didn't have a single touchdown pass in the first two weeks of the season, but managed to win NFL Offensive Rookie of the Month in October.

So far in nine games, Nix has 13 total touchdowns, which is tied for 12th-most among all players right now. He's got eight passing touchdowns, four rushing touchdowns, and a receiving touchdown that might go down as one of the best catches a quarterback can possibly make.

Nix has missed a couple of touchdown throws, to be sure, but his receivers have also let him down and dropped a handful of touchdowns as well. The fact that he's just outside the top 10 in total touchdowns right now, just halfway through his rookie season, is pretty remarkable.

2. Bo Nix has incredibly low turnover-worthy play rate

It can't be overstated just how important this statistic is for Nix, and you'll get even more added context of how impressive it is with the third item on our list here. But for Nix to come in as a rookie and be among the top three in the NFL right now in turnover-worthy play percentage is very impressive.

Nix took good care of the football while he was at Oregon, and he's continued that into the start of his NFL career. Within this statistic are a number of factors at play. First of all, Nix doesn't put the ball into harm's way all that often. He had a handful of interceptions in his first two NFL games against the Seahawks and Steelers, but he has only thrown two interceptions since the first two weeks of the year, and those were both on passes that were tipped off the hands of his receivers.

Nix also doesn't get sacked all that often. In fact, he has one of the best sack rates (4.85 percent) out of any quarterback in the league. And yes, that is a statistic that is attributed to Nix as sacks are often more of a QB statistic than an offensive line statistic (although Denver's OL has held up very well in pass protection).

Nix taking care of the football has been a tremendous aspect of his game early on in the NFL.

3. Bo Nix is better at creating big plays than his detractors would care to admit

Now this is a very interesting stat from James Palmer, who shows us here that no quarterback other than MVP favorite Lamar Jackson has accounted for more explosive plays this season than Bo Nix. Remarkable. Amazing.

We're talking about the same Bo Nix, right? The guy who wasn't worth a 1st or even 2nd-round pick? The guy who was too old to make progress at the NFL level? The guy who only threw screens and check-downs at Oregon? The guy with the noodle arm? The guy who is cosplaying as a pocket quarterback in the NFL? That Bo Nix? We're talking about that guy?

Yes, we're talking about the same guy. Nix has not shown an aversion to pushing the ball downfield whatsoever early on in his NFL career, nor has he shown an inability to push it downfield. In fact, a lot of people jumped into my Twitter mentions after the Ravens game to state that Nix is throwing the ball too far for his receivers. Imagine that.

The fact that Nix is 2nd in the NFL in explosive plays behind only Lamar Jackson is awesome enough, but that he is 3rd-best in the NFL in terms of turnover-worthy plays? Well, it's even better. It proves that Nix is not only taking shots downfield, but he's seeing the field well and running the offense well.

There are a lot of reasons at this point to be excited about Bo Nix but these three stats, in particular, fly in the face of what a lot of people have said about him and his NFL projection.