Examining if Bo Nix has Earned the Handcuffs Sean Payton Put in Place

Over the past few weeks, a debate has emerged within the Denver Broncos fan base over the handcuffs placed on the offense, particularly on Bo Nix, by head coach Sean Payton.

With all of the Broncos' offensive issues, there is plenty of blame to go around between Payton, Nix, and the receiving weapons, but there shouldn’t be a debate over whether the head coach is handcuffing the quarterback.

Studying this offense from 2024 through 10 games of the 2025 season, one thing is abundantly clear: the issues Nix had as a rookie have not been improved upon so far in 2025. As a result, the handcuffing Payton has imposed on Nix is justified.

Those restrictions are hamstringing the Broncos' offense. Let's dive into this increasingly alarming subject.

Same Old Issues

Nix has the same struggles working in the middle of the field that he did as a rookie. We saw it on Thursday night vs. the Las Vegas Raiders, with only 3-of-28 passes being over the middle, resulting in a completion, a touchdown, and an interception. His play under pressure remains erratic; he puts himself under pressure, looks panicked in the pocket, and is unable to run a true drop-back passing game.

Despite these issues, Nix has found a way to get over them and put enough together to generate one fourth-quarter comeback after another. While it's hard to argue with the Broncos' 8-2 record, these issues directly lead to the sloppy football this offense produces for almost three quarters every game.

Well, except when the Broncos play bottom-three defenses in the NFL that are having communication errors, like the Dallas Cowboys and Cincinnati Bengals.

Mirage Games

Those two games are what are known as 'mirage' games, where the quality of the opponent — don’t get this twisted, as you can only play what is in front of you — is so bad that it makes you look good. Given how the Broncos have played in their other eight games this season, it's clear there is no consistency outside of a few precious good quarters or flashes here and there.

The issues with Nix have led Payton to call plays that take away aspects of the offense, not because he wants to limit them, but because the quarterback forces those limitations. Another way of putting it: the way Nix has been playing has forced the guardrails to be put up for a kid at the bowling alley.

However, Nix isn’t a kid bowling; he is a soon-to-be 26-year-old with a ton of experience playing quarterback who shouldn’t look lost as often as he does.

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!

Examples vs. the Raiders

Denver Broncos quarterback Bo Nix (10) drops back to pass against the Las Vegas Raiders. — Nov 6, 2025; Denver, Colorado, USA; Denver Broncos quarterback Bo Nix (10) drops back to pass against the Las Vegas Raiders during the first half at Empower Field at Mile High. | Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images

There are plenty of plays that highlight these issues, especially against the Raiders, which will be further examined in a film breakdown this weekend, but the Broncos ran simple concepts, and Nix seemed to play like he had no idea what they were. To lean on a similar analogy, it's like a kid being exposed to basic addition and treating it like trigonometry.

Both interceptions vs. the Raiders were directly on Nix, though some will argue the second was on Troy Franklin. The first one was on second down, and instead of hitting Courtland Sutton working his way back, Nix chucks it up deep.

Nix's eyes were downfield from the start, and he never saw Sutton. Fixating on a single receiver has held this offense back consistently this season, and here it gave the Raiders a free possession.

On the second interception, Nix fired a bad pass to Pat Bryant, who was the target, as clear from the route and the throw, which went over Bryant. Franklin wasn’t ready for the ball because he was the clear-out route; he was designed to pull coverage and get Bryant open underneath.

Nix threw that ball with great timing for Bryant coming out of his break, but he fired it high. Franklin tried to make something out of nothing, and it bounced off his hands — yes, he should’ve caught it despite everything else — and it ends up going back the other way.

On another play, it was 2nd-&-12 after the Broncos' special teams had blocked a punt, and the Raiders dropped eight into coverage. Nix panicked like he had never seen eight drop into coverage before.

He rushed through his process and fired an erratic pass with unsettled feet, which led to third down, where much of the same happened. Denver settles for a field goal after a blocked punt set them up with 12 yards to go for a touchdown — and that is after a quarterback power play was dialed up on first down, which lost two yards.

The Handcuffs: RPOs, Field-Cutting, & Screens

Denver Broncos quarterback Bo Nix (10) talks with head coach Sean Payton in the fourth quarter against the Las Vegas Raiders. — Nov 6, 2025; Denver, Colorado, USA; Denver Broncos quarterback Bo Nix (10) talks with head coach Sean Payton in the fourth quarter against the Las Vegas Raiders at Empower Field at Mile High. | Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images

Multiple times, Denver ran simple smash concepts, on which Nix was late with his throws and erratic ball placement, leading to failed plays or yards left on the field. Because of plays like this, which are a staple of this offense, Payton has had to put the handcuffs on Nix. The quarterback can’t consistently handle the simplest of concepts, so RPOs, field-cutting concepts, and screens make up the majority of play calls.

It doesn’t help that when Payton does dial up a deep shot, Nix can’t hit consistently with his throws, often sailing over receivers' heads. You can live with a handcuffed offense if you can hit those shots when they're dialed up. Even Tim Tebow would hit the deep shots, but Nix isn't doing so this season.

Don't Blame the O-Line

The Broncos' offensive line isn’t the issue, as it has been one of the best, if not the best, pass-protecting units in the NFL, except when Nix puts added strain on his blockers with his poor pocket management. That doesn’t mean the Broncos' O-line is perfect, but out of 10 throws, they're an issue on one, maybe two of them.

The Broncos sit at 8-2 with some magical moments from their offense, but if they keep going in this direction offensively, eventually, things will break. The Broncos have managed to sustain this for 10 weeks, but how much longer can they keep it up?

When it comes to December and playoff football, you can perhaps pull off a Wildcard win in the playoffs with an offense like this (again, see Tebow circa 2011), but not much more.

Broncos Can't Waste This Defense

The Broncos' defense has been phenomenal, but if it falters — as it did against the Los Angeles Chargers and the Indianapolis Colts — the offense can’t make up for it. Denver has had multiple seasons when the defense had to pick up the offensive slack, and it has always held up until a certain point before falling apart, and the whole team crumbled.

Payton has put on the handcuffs because he doesn’t want his quarterback and offense to go out there and lose those games, and that came close to happening agains the Raiders. You know, the 2-7 Raiders who have been a middle-of-the-pack defense and a terrible offense all season?

The Takeaway

Being 8-2 is excellent, but there isn’t much to feel confident about with the surging Kansas City Chiefs coming up next.

The handcuffs are deserved, and until Nix can show he can operate the offense with them, they should remain in place. Only then can Payton start loosening them up, and hopefully it happens soon, because right now it looks like this defense is destined to be wasted.