Denver was trying to catch up with the Seattle Seahawks in its season opener, and Broncos rookie quarterback Bo Nix launched a sprint that gained 23 yards with less than five minutes left.
Five passes from Nix later, the quarterback ran into the end zone from 4 yards out and scored his first NFL touchdown, but the Broncos still lost 20-26.
RELATED: BO NIX’ NFL DEBUT: “HE GAVE US A CHANCE”
The drive-starting sprint revealed something perhaps unexpected about Nix. The former Pinson Valley High School and Auburn star reached 20.05 mph on his running attempt. Only one player in the NFL had faster speed on a running play in the league in Week 1 – Buffalo Bills running back James Cook, who reached 20.99 mph.
“I think it’s a strength when you can use it at the right time,” Nix said of his speed. “And much like in the game, you have that opportunity and you make the most of it. I didn’t know it would happen this quickly, but it’s nice to see. With all the hard work in the offseason, we train speed, we train athleticism. That’s part of the gift we have to play quarterbacks, when we can use our legs. That’s tough on defense.”
Nix’s legs could be tested in his second NFL game. The Broncos play the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday. Pittsburgh outside linebacker TJ Watt has the most sacks in the NFL in three of the last four seasons and recorded one of them in the Steelers’ 18-10 season-opening win over the Atlanta Falcons. The same goes for former Auburn star Montravius Adams, who is now a defensive tackle for Pittsburgh.
In his last 18 seasons as Pittsburgh coach, Mike Tomlin has compiled a 24-6 record against rookie starting quarterbacks.
“It’s definitely a challenge,” Nix said. “They have great players. They’ve had a great defense for a long time, so I have a lot of respect for them. It will be fun to play against them for the first time and see what it’s like.”
In his NFL debut, Nix completed 26 of 42 passes for 138 yards with no touchdowns and two interceptions and ran five times for 35 yards and a touchdown.
“It was a great learning game, a great growth game,” Nix said. “I think the film was positive. When you come back, you see that there were opportunities and you could capitalize on it in a few more areas. …
“Our two-minute drives have actually resulted in 10 points, so that’s really important during a game. We just have to find ways to do that the rest of the time.”
Nix was the 12th player selected in the NFL Draft on April 25. He beat out former Auburn star Jarrett Stidham and Zach Wilson for quarterback and was allowed to start in the Broncos’ opening game at Lumen Field in Seattle.
“I wasn’t surprised because that’s how we work all week,” Nix said, “but we were very efficient with the plays in the huddle. We made the right plays. We didn’t let the crowd noise affect us. We got that one penalty in the red zone. We just had to be louder. But other than that, the guys lined up the right way. We didn’t make any real mental mistakes. And in an away position like that, it saves you a lot of yards, so you just want to make sure you keep doing that.
“And as I said, it’s no surprise because we’re efficient in training, but that was definitely one of the keys to us going home with so much confidence.”
The Broncos will play the Steelers at 3:05 p.m. CDT on Sunday at Empower Field at Mile High in Denver.
“I’m really looking forward to it,” Nix said. “I’ve been looking forward to it since the draft. I’m looking forward to having a home game. I’m looking forward to not having to travel this week. It’s going to be a good home game.”
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Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter at @AMarkG1.
