Mile High Huddle

Film Illustrates Why There's a Growing Alarm About Bo Nix

The NFL world is becoming increasingly alarmed in Bo Nix's erratic play, and after seeing him vs. the Las Vegas Raiders, many Denver Broncos fans are beginning to feel unsettled. What seems to be Nix's problem, though? We dive into the film.
Erick Trickel|
Nov 6, 2025; Denver, Colorado, USA; Denver Broncos quarterback Bo Nix (10) practices before the game at Empower Field at Mile High.
Nov 6, 2025; Denver, Colorado, USA; Denver Broncos quarterback Bo Nix (10) practices before the game at Empower Field at Mile High. | Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images

In this story:

Denver Broncos

Denver Broncos quarterback Bo Nix played one of the worst games of his NFL career against the Las Vegas Raiders on Thursday night, often looking lost and unsure of what he was seeing. On top of that, his ball placement was erratic, and he seemed clueless in situational football, which is unusual for him. 

Breaking down the film, 18 plays stood out that highlight how bad Nix was for the Broncos, so narrowing it down for a breakdown was tough. However, these five plays are the best illustration of how badly Nix played and the issues he brought to the table that held the Broncos' offense back from trampling the Raiders. 

Before getting into the film, there is one thing that needs to be made clear. I'm in no way, shape, or form calling for Nix to be benched or asserting that he is a bust. Denver is 8-2, and that buys him more time to get out of the funk he's been in for much of the season, and even into next year.

However, these plays highlight concerns that have been there since his college days at Aurbun, and the fact that they're still being displayed now is more than a little alarming.

Play 1

The first play to look at is Nix’s first interception, which came on 2nd-&-15. There is still another down, so Nix needs to have the situational understanding that he doesn’t need it all now. Denver still had one timeout and plenty of time to take a smaller gain and live to fight another down.

In a rare feat, left tackle Garett Bolles was beaten quickly off the snap, forcing Nix to escape out of the pocket. While there were plenty of occasions of Nix abandoning good pockets quickly, this wasn’t one of them. 

Courtland Sutton is working a comeback route in front of where Nix escapes to, and he has the defender stacked. Sutton made himself a target short of the first down, but it would have given the Broncos at least seven yards and a slightly more manageable third down to move the chains. 

Nix doesn’t look Sutton's way; instead, he reverted to Bo “All-or-Nothing” Nix, chucking up an arm punt to Troy Franklin that got intercepted by the Raiders. There are issues with Franklin not making sure the defender was down, but this ball never should have been thrown, as there was tight coverage with help over the top. 

This is a complete breakdown of Nix's decision-making and situational awareness. Denver didn’t need 30-plus yards and the touchdown, and making the decision to throw somewhat across the body off-platform makes it worse. There are only a few quarterbacks in the NFL who can make that throw, and Nix isn’t one of them. 

To find consistency on offense, Nix needs to rein in his aggressiveness, which has been hurting the Broncos over the past few weeks. It’s okay to take what the defense gives you and go to the next down. If this were third down, the conversation might be different. 

Play 2

The Broncos are backed up on their own six-yard line here and need to generate some yardage to flip the field position. It's a 3rd-&-12, so Denver has one down to get it all, and Sean Payton dials up a play call that is well designed and executed by the receivers, but Nix and the blocking weren’t great. 

Left guard Alex Palczewski loses to Adam Butler, forcing a double clutch from Nix, another bad habit the quarterback has developed. Nix needs to let it rip. This is one of those plays. 

Denver has a trip wide off the left tackle, with Sutton, Pat Bryant, and Franklin. Sutton pulls the safety and linebacker, with Franklin going over the top, and both of the other defenders sitting flat-footed for the out route by Bryant. 

Ideally, Nix is ripping a shot to Franklin as the opening to pick up the first down and generate an explosive play was there. While that wasn’t the case on the previous play we examined, it was the right decision here as it is what the defense is giving the Broncos. 

Nix double-clutches, but he wasn’t looking at Franklin, which is what keeps the Raiders' defensive backs flat-footed. Bryant is entering his break, and that ball needs to be coming out and leading Bryant out of his break. While it's unlikely he picks up the first, it would have given Bryant the best chance to pick up the first down. 

There needs to be calculated risk from Nix, and taking a shot to Franklin would’ve been just that, or even throwing it to Bryant instead of double-clutching, even though it was caused by pressure. The double-clutch throws off the timing of the route, gives the Raiders' defenders time to make their breaks, and results in an incomplete pass after an inaccurate throw. 

What happens next for the Broncos? Don't miss out on any news and analysis! Take a second, sign up for our free newsletter, and get breaking Broncos news delivered to your inbox daily!

Play 3

This is all on Nix as the Raiders drop eight into coverage, and Nix never settles his feet. As soon as he hits the top of his drop, his footwork falls apart, and he gets panicked, looking for an escape route. 

Denver gets tight end Evan Engram open with a shot for Nix, but his feet are a mess. They never reset, despite there being time for him to do so. This leads to an errant throw that falls incomplete. 

The Broncos' offense has been hurt by Nix's terrible footwork all season long, especially the jittery, panicked feet that he never sets. He has to figure out the subtle movements in the pocket and reset his feet; otherwise, he will keep holding the offense back. 

This was an essential drive as the Broncos started on the Raiders' 12-yard line after a blocked punt. First down was a quarterback power, where Nix made a bad pre-snap read and lost two yards. The failures on this play and the subsequent third down (the next play we'll examine) fall on Nix, who kept the Broncos out of the end zone on what should have been a sure-fire touchdown to Engram. 

Play 4

This is the next play, and the issues here start pre-snap. Franklin is in the backfield, and he motions out wide with no defender following him. That tells Nix this is zone coverage, and the Raiders have one corner on that side of the field, making it an obvious cover-3 read. 

The play is simple and should be dictated by the coverage; in this case, it should be a quick strike to Franklin, hoping he can pick up the first down or touchdown with the numbers advantage the Broncos have. 

Off the snap, Nix pumps a fake to Trent Sherfield, who is setting up for a back-shoulder fade, but this fake shouldn’t have happened based on the pre-snap read. No Raider defender is biting on the pump because the corner is dropping into his zone to cover Sherfield on the fade. 

Nix needed to make the pre-snap read and fire it out to Franklin quickly. Instead, because of the pump fake, Maxx Crosby can delay the throw even more by pushing right tackle Mike McGlinchey into the throwing lane. This added second of delay leads the Raiders to rotate coverage to pick up Franklin, who has nowhere to go by the time the ball gets to him. 

This is as simple as they come for pre-snap reads. In fact, all three plays on this drive were, and Nix failed to recognize each of them. 

Play 5

On Nix’s second interception, there is some debate as to who the pass was to, but when breaking down the play, Franklin doesn't appear to be the intended target, and Nix sailed the pass over Bryant, who was. Now, Franklin still had the ball bounce off his hands, but he wasn’t ready for it. Franklin deserves his share of the blame for that, but mostly falls on Nix.

The first indicator of Bryant being the actual target is the route concept. It's a levels concept that creates a natural pick with Bryant, the outside receiver, cutting inside before Franklin, the inside receiver, who cuts inside a few yards later. By design, this is to have deeper in-route pull coverage and create an opening underneath, with the natural pick creating more space. 

There is another indicator: the timing of the throw, but this assumes Nix, who had been off with his timing consistently all season, was on time for this one. Nix is getting into his motion in time with Bryant’s break, with the intent to get him the ball when he snaps his break off, which is when the ball does arrive, but high for Bryant's catch radius. 

Bryant didn’t think the pass was to him, so he pulled his hands back before making any contact, and an unsuspecting Franklin is late with his hands to make the catch and pops the ball up, leading to the interception. 

Bryant was the target, but Nix sailed it. So what caused Nix to sail the pass? Well, that’d be his footwork and lower-body mechanics as he is having to twist, since he isn’t pointing his lower half for his throw. These issues often lead to passes sailing on the quarterback. 

The Takeaway

This was one of the worst games of Nix’s young career, but the Broncos sit 8-2, so he hasn’t cost them a game yet, though this was a close one. The Broncos need to figure out a way to get their mind and body right if they're serious about making the playoffs and competing deep into January.

It’s hard to win playoff-level football with a quarterback playing like this, and the Kansas City Chiefs are going to be a much more challenging task. However, there's time yet for Nix to exhale, take a breath, and regather himself.

It's been a long 10 weeks, but the promising second-year quarterback is running out of excuses to dismiss his lackluster and inconsistent play, and the Broncos are running out of time.

More Must-Read Denver Broncos Coverage

Published
Erick Trickel
ERICK TRICKEL

Erick Trickel is the Senior Draft Analyst for Mile High Huddle, has covered the Denver Broncos, NFL, and NFL Draft for the site since 2014. 

Share on XFollow ErickTrickel
Home/News