If you saw any prospect rankings ahead of the 2024 NFL Draft, there is a good chance Bo Nix was slotted in the 30-50 range, which was the case from pretty much every “mainstream” analyst. Those from “alternative” sites usually had him even lower, paired with sharp criticism.
If there was a player description, or you listened to any podcasts or television segments about Nix, he might’ve been labeled as a low-ceiling prospect—perhaps more of a career backup—with limited arm talent and playmaking ability.
Those labels couldn’t be further from the truth, and it seems Sean Payton and the Broncos were one of the only ones to see it; Wolf Sports was another, as we had Nix as our No. 2 overall prospect behind only Caleb Williams, and it was essentially a tie between the two Pac-12 standouts.
While we gave the Patrick Mahomes comparison to Williams, Nix showed Mahomes-like magic in his college career—so much so that you could legitimately stack his best throws at Auburn versus some of the top NFL plays of Mahomes. My ears perked up when immediately after Denver’s selection last Thursday night, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported that “Payton feels as strongly about Bo Nix as he did Mahomes.”
The news had the opposite impact on many of the doubters—sending them into tailspin and calling Payton a liar by saying he never even wanted Mahomes. (The narrative ignores the fact that Mahomes himself has told the story about texting Kansas City about needing to trade up because Payton and the Saints were about to take him in the 2017 NFL Draft. And do you really think Payton would want the comparison out there if he didn’t believe it?)
For those still doubtful about Payton believing in Nix, think back on what he said about scouting quarterbacks at the Combine:
“I think we’ll be really good at this. And I think to some degree, we’re glad that a lot of people aren’t.”
Earlier this offseason, Denver’s head coach also said he doesn’t care how signal-callers are viewed by the media, which should be how every general manager, coach, or scout operates. The groupthink is always wrong, so why should anyone care what the “consensus board” says about anything?
Still, the know-it-alls scattered throughout sports media—who ironically know nothing—have sent plenty of heat towards Payton for his quarterback choice. Of course, these are the same people who called Josh Allen a parody of a quarterback prospect, viewed Jalen Hurts as a Day 3 prospect, and openly mocked Brock Purdy’s chances of making it in the NFL.
I won’t call anyone out directly, and it wouldn’t matter if I did because there have been no repercussions for being wrong time and time again. However, I did take note of the rankings for Nix from “experts” over the past week, and they will be stored along with my folder of Josh Allen criticisms.
Fortunately, all that truly matters is the on-field results, and the people making fun of Nix for what he has in his backpack could be the ones sent packing if accountability returns to the world.