The Denver Broncos are 2-2 to open the 2026 season, but the offense has been bad enough for Sean Payton to make a drastic change just four games into the season.
Payton has taken back play-calling duties offensively after delegating that position to Davis Webb during the offseason. It was a big enough decision that Payton met with the media to address it on his "off" day, noting that the Broncos had to button up the little things with the offense, and that they need "balance" in running the football.
But ultimately, troubleshooting issues on offense will always come down to two people: The person in charge of calling plays and the quarterback. That means the pressure is now on Bo Nix, with the Broncos making a change in the play-calling department.
Bo Nix now in focus after Broncos HC Sean Payton makes drastic coaching move
So far this season, Nix is completing just 60 percent of his passes for 819 yards, 5 touchdowns, and 3 interceptions. He also had a rushing touchdown in the comeback win against the Rams.
With just 25 rushing yards through the first four games of the season, Nix has simply not been the same type of dynamic threat at the quarterback position that we've gotten used to seeing over the past few seasons in Denver.
The questions about his ankle injury in the playoffs last season -- and whether or not the effects of it are lingering -- won't stop anytime soon with the way Nix has been as a dual-threat in 2026. In four games this season, he has just 25 rushing yards total.
During his rookie season, he had 110 rushing yards through the first four games of the year. During the 2025 season, he had 78 rushing yards through the team's first four games.
Even more than just rushing yards, Nix's mobility has not been nearly as much of a factor this season as it was during his first two years in the league, even in the first four games. We've gotten so used to Nix making big-time throws on the move, escaping the pocket, and he's not doing that nearly as much in 2026.
There may not even be anything physically going on with Nix right now, but it's clear that there are still some mental hurdles he's potentially trying to clear. Of course, that's just speculation at this point, but the results on the field are giving us hints.
When Sean Payton was hired as the head coach of the Broncos, he was asked about "fixing" Russell Wilson. And part of his answer back then included the idea of playing Wilson's "greatest hits" as a player. Meaning, run the plays the guy is good at.
When Payton was on the Monday Night Football Manningcast for the Saints and Falcons matchup in Week 5, he was asked about what the biggest factors are for a young quarterback to succeed in the NFL. His answer was defense and a running game.
We know that Payton wants better balance with the running game now that he's taking over the offensive play-calling again, but we're also going to need to see Bo Nix get back to some of his greatest hits as a player. Yes, he has to play better within the structure of the offense. But hand-in-hand with that, we need to see Nix doing more playmaking for the Broncos' offense.
We haven't seen enough of it in 2026.
Regardless of the public perception of Nix, he has been the catalyst for the Broncos' biggest offensive successes in recent years. As he goes, the offense goes. He's certainly got dirty hands for the offense's slower starts, but he's also the biggest reason why the team has been able to win so many games -- including a Divisional Round playoff matchup -- over the past couple of seasons.
There is a lot of pressure on Nix's shoulders. It's almost as though he doesn't have the "luxury" of time when it comes to getting past any mental hurdles because of his ankle injury. The Broncos need him to be an offense creator as much as they need him to be a field general.
Against the Chargers, he's going to be under the microscope in a big way. The questions about the ankle will linger until he starts playing like the Bo Nix we've seen in the past.
With Payton hoping to button up some of the small issues plaguing this Broncos offense, which has undoubtedly been worse this year than anything we saw last year, perhaps a fire will be lit in Nix as well.
He needs it.
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