Payton Peels Back Curtain on How Broncos Evaluated Bo Nix Last Year

The NFL Combine is officially a wrap. One Denver Broncos storyline emerging from the Combine centered around head coach Sean Payton's comment about Bo Nix's body of work in Indianapolis a year ago and when the team officially fell in "love" with the young quarterback.

Speaking with NFL Network's Peter Schrager, Payton dished on how the Broncos evaluated Nix a year ago, which revealed much about the team's methodology. Yes, the Broncos spent time with Nix at the 2024 NFL Combine, but that's not when the Oregon quarterback officially won Payton over.

"We didn't at the time," Payton said to Schrager relative to whether the Broncos knew Nix was their guy at the Combine last year. "I would say that decision probably was finalized, or we felt real strong—it wasn't just the—he had a pro day on Friday and then, Saturday, we had a private workout. I think that Saturday after his private workout, we felt like that was our target. Yeah, this time, at this point in time, we didn't. And he really didn't throw well [at the Combine]."

It's reassuring that Payton and the Broncos can see beyond the vagaries of how players perform in the less-than-organic environment of the Combine.

In recent years, so much has come to depend on the metrics prospects produce in front of a host of NFL scouts and coaches under the bright lights of the Combine, but it shouldn't be the end-all-be-all. There's more to the draft equation than what happens at Lucas Oil Stadium in February each year.

Furthermore, Payton lifted the lid on how uniquely challenging the pre-draft process can be, touching on the importance of private workouts and the medical examinations. We also know how crucial game tape and team-driven analytics are.

"Here's a couple of things I can recall," Payton told Schrager. "So, for years in our league, the footballs were never broken in. They come right out of the box. That's a challenge for a college quarterback. I mean, they're slippery, they're not broken in. And then you get in here, the temperature is maybe a little cooler than you think. It's air-conditioned. So learning all of those things, getting adjusted to that... The prep that they have now is so much different than just 20 years ago—the understanding of what's to be expected, how to handle the interviews, how to handle the medical part of it, how to handle these drills. I've seen players that have bad ball skills that are outstanding through the gauntlet and they've just worked on it so much, so, again, it comes back to the medical information. That's most important, and then the interview."

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Payton is savvy and experienced enough to conduct rigorous evaluations that cut through a player trying to cater to a specific drill or discipline. Thankfully for the Broncos, we know how that worked out as it related to Nix, who certainly delivered during a rookie campaign, tossing 29 touchdown passes and leading the Broncos back to the playoffs with a 10-win season.

It could be argued that Payton's revelations on how he approaches the draft only relate to quarterback evaluations. That may be true in part, but it's evident that Payton and the Broncos are prepared to go the extra mile and let their evaluations breathe a little.

Plus, we must frame it within the context that Nix was the first quarterback Payton evaluated, drafted in the first round, and developed as a rookie, so he seems to have knocked it out of the park on the first pitch.

The Broncos will look to use Payton's approach once again as they sift through the Combine results and their data. This time around, 10 of the Broncos' formal meetings with prospects in Indianapolis were held with running backs. Payton is clearly on the hunt for his elusive 'joker.'

The complexity is only rising, however, as Payton is also looking to unearth a game-changing tight end. It's a time-consuming job, and the devil is most certainly in the details.

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