Sean Payton on Bo Nix: ‘We have the right QB in the building’

Sean Payton has heard the questions about Bo Nix’s arm since before the Denver Broncos drafted him. On Wednesday, he called them the biggest misconception about his quarterback.

“Probably the biggest false narrative relative to him coming out was his arm strength,” Payton said on “The Herd with Colin Cowherd.” “He’s got way above average arm talent.”

"I know we have the right quarterback in the building."@colincowherd & @Broncos head coach @SeanPayton talk Bo Nix pic.twitter.com/1XcRFvSMGT

— Herd w/Colin Cowherd (@TheHerd) November 11, 2026

Payton, whose Broncos are 7-2 and in first place in the AFC West and are on their bye week, said he has no doubts about Nix.

“I know we have the right quarterback in the building,” Payton said. “I’ve just seen it. I’ve seen the behavior, the things that you need in clutch moments.”

Payton is answering those questions because Nix’s early season play coming off a season-ending ankle injury last year was subpar. The Broncos offense as a whole has been struggling still, as one of the bottom dwellers in yardage. Nix’s average depth of target has been very low even with his play picking up and clutch performances leading to win. But Payton is locked in on Nix as the guy. Yet, he isn’t as sure about the rest of the offense. Asked where it stands, he described it as a house under construction.

“There’s still that yellow tape around the offense that says work in progress,” Payton said. “The tape ultimately that’s surrounding the offense has to come down, and the family needs to move in.”

He also called out the offensive line after watching film of Sunday’s win over Carolina.

“We didn’t block them very well, and I’m just being honest,” Payton said. “So that has to improve. We’ve got plenty of depth in the offensive line, and so during this bye, we’re gonna look at all those little things closely.”

Perhaps that’s a hint at the Broncos making a change up front to a starting unit that has been together for basically four years with the only change coming after 2023 when the team let Lloyd Cushenberry III walk in free agency and they’ve started Luke Wattenberg since.

The Broncos have really struggled on the ground now for a while. But Payton sees Nix’s issues as more of an anomaly

“I said, ‘You realize in three weeks no one will have a clue,'” Payton said about Nix having a bad week here or there early on. “You’ve just gone through a gauntlet of some of the better defenses in football.”

That stretch included two games against Kansas City, plus Jacksonville and Seattle.

“I know you didn’t have us 7-2,” Payton told Cowherd. “It was a tough stretch to look at. … We’re at 7-2, and that’s the positive.”

Cowherd said other famed NFL quarterbacks both described Year 3 as the point where the game slowed down. For Nix, this is Year 3. His coach says the arm was never the issue, and the bye week is about finishing the offense around him.

“The quarterback thing,” Payton said, “he’s going to be outstanding.”

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