At this point, I am not sure Denver Broncos quarterback Bo Nix can do anything to silence the doubters, a group of people who have been adamant and loud ever since Nix came into the league in the 2024 NFL Draft.
Now in year three, all Nix has done is help lead his team to the playoffs in each of his first two seasons, and very likely a third. The Broncos have also won the AFC West and got within one game of the Super Bowl.
Not only that, Denver's 16-straight one-score game victories is an all-time record, and Nix continues to be at the center of it, but in FanSided's updated QB rankings, we see Nix take an unfair tumble down the ranking.
Denver Broncos' QB Bo Nix tumbles down into the 20s in FanSided's latest rankings.
The ranking is organized into tiers. Here is how the rankings look up through where Nix lands, which is going to be much lower than fans expect:
Tier 1 - Truly Elite
1. Josh Allen
2. Joe Burrow
3. Patrick Mahomes
4. Lamar Jackson
Tier 2 - High-End QB1
5. Caleb Williams
6. Brock Purdy
7. Matthew Stafford
8. Trevor Lawrence
8. Jared Goff
10. Jordan Love
11. Dak Prescott
12. Drake Maye
Tier 3 - Strong QB1
13. CJ Stroud
14. Jayden Daniels
Tier 4 - Solid Starter
15. Jalen Hurts
16. Bryce Young
17. Justin Herbert
18. Sam Darnold
19. Baker Mayfield
20. Aaron Rodgers
21. Jaxson Dart
22. Bo Nix
There are certain QBs ranked ahead of Nix who have, inarguably, been better this year. Most, if not all of the QBs in the first three tiers have been better, but I struggle to see how Maye has simply performed rather poorly this year - he leads the league with 13 turnovers at the position, and the New England Patriots are very clearly far from a formidable team.
And even in the Tier 4 ranking, I struggle to see how guys like Justin Herbert, Sam Darnold, and Baker Mayfield get the nod over Nix - Herbert has nearly double the interceptions as touchdown passes. He's been a bottom-3 QB in the sport this year and has the lowest QBR among all starters. For Herbert, it's been a season to forget. Nothing has worked for the Chargers, and Herbert himself is partly to blame.
Mayfield is another QB whose ranking doesn't make much sense - he is just barely ahead of Herbert in QBR and also has thrown more interceptions than touchdowns. Despite Tampa Bay sporting a hyper-efficient rushing attack, Mayfield's production in six games is bottom-tier.
Darnold's argument for being ranked ahead of Nix is also one that doesn't really add it up. He has a lower completion percentage, has been hurt this year, has thrown fewer touchdowns, more interceptions, and has been sacked more.
It's hard to see what Darnold has done better than the Broncos' QB this year, and Darnold also has the luxury of having the best wide receiver in the sport on his side in Jaxon Smith-Njigba. Whether from FanSided's updated rankings, or some other national-Nix take that makes Broncos fans roll their eyes, it's abundantly clear that, even in year three, Nix isn't getting the credit that he deserves.
Denver has become one of the most winningest franchises in sports since Nix got drafted, and while it's not always pretty, there is nothing more important in this league for teams than winning. While wins aren't directly a QB stat, and never have been, winning does follow certain QBs, and it's usually not some silly coincidence.
Nix and the Broncos offense have also heated up as of late - the unit has averaged 28 points over the last three games, and we're also seeing Nix's efficiency come along as well. While many across the NFL landscape try to poke holes in Nix's career and find reasons not to believe, he'll keep proving them wrong, as he's done his entire career.
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