ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — Denver's unconventional quarterback competition concluded Wednesday with one final plot twist when Broncos coach Sean Payton walked up to his QBs during warmups and informed them rookie Bo Nix had won the starting job.
''He smiled," Payton said of the 12th overall pick out of Oregon and sixth QB selected in the 2024 NFL draft. ''We were getting ready to practice, and that was it. You know, we didn't have cake and candles or anything like that.''
Payton didn't even share the news with the rest of his team when he gathered everyone after practice.
''I haven't told the rest of the team yet," Payton said. "Because I'm not going to spend meetings with the rest of the team on every one of these other positions."
Besides, he said, ''they've kind of seen this coming."
Nix, who started an NCAA QB-record 61 times at Oregon and Auburn, has led the Broncos to scores on six of the seven drives he's directed in the preseason and he's been statistically one of the league's best passers this month.
Payton said one of his resolutions for this year was having a better relationship with the local media, so he made sure not to leak the news of his decision to anyone in the national media.
But he did inform about 50 local military members participating at "USAA's Salute to Service NFL Boot Camp" of his choice before taking the podium, saying he was in a hurry because he had to go announce Nix as his starter.