After the Denver Broncos notched their 11th win of the season, they once again faced scrutiny from the outside. Because for many, winning itself isn't good enough. You have to win with style points to earn respect, or at least silence your harshest critics.
Broncos quarterback Bo Nix doesn't pay much attention to the noise, but he's certainly aware of it. And when he was asked after the win against the Raiders about "managing" the game as a quarterback, he gave a really thoughtful and insightful response.
Nix flipped the idea that "managing the game" as a quarterback is an inherently negative evaluation of how a quarterback played overall.
Bo Nix sets the record straight on managing the game after Broncos beat Raiders handily
"Yeah, you're right. It's become a negative thing. I don't know why, because the best quarterbacks of all time manage the game at a high level. I think the biggest difference is when the time comes down to it, they just find ways to make either an explosive or make another play. So, all the good ones, all the great ones that win, they manage the game at a high level. Some are just more flashy, and I think they don't have that context or that tag.
But it really doesn't matter because your job as a quarterback, execute the play that's called, get your team in the end zone, and at the end of the day, have more points than the other team, and find a way to win, and that's what we're managing to do."
- Bo Nix (via Broncos PR)
Nix doesn't care about stats or accolades. He doesn't care about style points. He cares about winning, and that obviously comes across with the way he plays the game.
He doesn't seem to have a nervous bone in his body. He is cool and collected in pretty much every situation, evidenced by the fact that he has six game-winning drives this season. And Nix has come through for the Broncos in many more opportunities throughout the course of the team's 10-game winning streak.
It's been awesome to see his growth as a player throughout the 2025 season. Obviously, it hasn't been perfect. Nix has had some rough games. He's put the team in bad positions at times. But you just get the feeling that no matter what, the Broncos are never out of a game.
And over the last three weeks, ever since a dismal performance (from the entire team) against the Raiders earlier this year, Nix has turned it up significantly. He has played outstanding football against the Chiefs, Commanders, and now the Raiders. Even without a single touchdown pass against the Raiders, you could argue it was the most impressive game we've seen from Nix.
He completed 31 passes on the day, and had outstanding accuracy throughout. He could have easily gone 21-for-21 in the first half if his receivers didn't let him down.
As far as "managing" a game goes, the things we saw Nix do against the Raiders were pretty special.