When the Denver Broncos took Bo Nix with the 12th overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, the immediate fallout was not pretty. Many people hammered the pick, even saying that the Broncos panic-drafted Nix.
The Broncos had seen the Minnesota Vikings trade ahead of them to snag JJ McCarthy, and he's now embroiled in a quarterback battle with Kyler Murray. It's safe to say that Nix was the right call, and even if Denver was more interested in Caleb Williams, Drake Maye, or Jayden Daniels, there was virtually no chance of the team being able to trade up that far to snag one of them.
Now in year three, Nix could be the 12th-best quarterback in the NFL depending on who you ask. He may be the 17th-best in the eyes of some. Well, The Athletic rolled out their yearly quarterback rankings, which are voted on by 50 executives and coaches, and Nix's standing in the ranking might not be what Broncos Country was hoping for.
Denver Broncos QB Bo Nix ranked 18th among quarterbacks according to executives and coaches
Nix came in right at the top of 'Tier 3,' and just behind Jalen Hurts and Trevor Lawrence, but just ahead of Aaron Rodgers and CJ Stroud:
2026 QB Tiers is live!!@TheAthletic keeps raising the bar in terms of production quality
— Mike Sando (@SandoNFL) August 4, 2026
This year you can produce your own tiers with your own votes
Link in replies pic.twitter.com/MAy63JiKz5
I guess one thing to note here is that the tier of quarterbacks from that 11-18 range seems to be a coinflip. That middle-upper tier is definitely the toughest part of the ranking to figure out. We all know the very best in the NFL are who they are, but the further you get down on any sort of ranking, tougher it gets.
We have absolutely seen Nix play like a top-10 quarterback before, but we've also seen him play like a bottom-10 passer. However, our eyes don't lie, and through two seasons, we've seen Denver turn into one of the winningest teams in the NFL, and get within one game of the Super Bowl.
I do personally wonder just how much higher Nix would appear in this type of ranking had he not broken his ankle and had the Broncos beaten the New England Patriots in the AFC Championship Game. These rankings do make me wonder how much that gets factored in.
Nix being ranked 18th does feel a bit low, as he's carried this team to victory time and time again and has dealt with drops, more than almost every other passer on the list. The Broncos registered 43 drops in 2025, only trailing the Jacksonville Jaguars for the most in the NFL.
And based on how this offseason has gone, specifically with Davis Webb now the play-caller and Jaylen Waddle in the mix, Nix is primed to have the best overall set-up he's had in his short NFL career.
There is plenty of room for Nix to improve and get into that top-10 tier, but being ranked closer to 25th than 10th does feel like a major slap in the face based on what he's done thus far.
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