The Denver Broncos' second-year quarterback has been hammered and criticized every since he came into the NFL, but all Nix and the Broncos have done since 2024 is win. After a 10-7 breakout season in 2024, the Broncos followed it up with a 14-3 campaign here in 2025.
Denver became the first AFC team to clinch a playoff spot this year and earned the top seed. Last year, they were the last team to clinch a spot and earned the seventh seed. It's neat to see how the Broncos had a completely opposite season year over year.
Anyway, Nix absolutely took a step forward this year and clearly had a better overall command of the offense. The numbers might not jump off the page, but you really have to dig a bit deeper to fully understand how good Nix was this year. Well, he seems to have another believer in analyst and former NFL QB, Dan Orlovsky, as he just said something all Bo Nix haters have to hear before the playoffs.
Dan Orlovsky is a Bo-liever, and for good reason
Dan Orlovsky only spoke for about one minute here, but what he said was must-hear stuff for the haters:
Bo Nix pic.twitter.com/4zjxci2Pnk
— Dan Orlovsky (@danorlovsky7) January 6, 2026
Orlovsky's primary point of emphasis here is just how good Bo Nix has been when trailing this year. He does say that Nix wasn't 'unbelievable' this year, but he goes on to say what many of us have been saying - Bo Nix simply made plays when his team needed him to the most.
The Broncos trailed a lot this year, and in many instances, it was in the first half. Denver got in a habit of closing the gap in the second half and eventually taking a lead. Whether it was due to poor defense or inefficient offense, the Broncos were trailing quite a bit, but Nix was also flat-out excellent in these circumstances. Here are his stats when his team was trailing in the 2025 regular season:
170/270 (63%)
2,112 total yards
21 total touchdowns
2 interceptions
102.4 passer rating
Nix has been flat-out surgical in these circumstances, and some have joked that the Broncos should just pretend every game starts in the third quarter with a deficit to makeup. The team is surely going to trail at some point in the playoffs, and it's nice to see that Nix and the offense don't shrink when things get a bit difficult.
This is a quality of an elite, battle-tested team, and it could take them all the way to a Super Bowl title.