Sean Payton defends Bo Nix after rookie QB’s tough Broncos debut

Denver Broncos rookie QB Bo Nix had a rough NFL debut in Seattle on Sunday.

But don’t the blame the kid, so says head coach Sean Payton.

In his postgame news conference after Denver’s 26-20 loss to the Seahawks, Payton wasn’t putting the fault on Nix. In fact, he seemed more upset with the rest of the team.

“We’ll watch the tape, but he gave us a chance. Our protection was average at best. At one point in the game I came to the bench and talked to the receivers and said ‘let’s go.’ I don’t know how many drops we had, but man, let’s help this guy,” Payton said.

Nix finished 26-42 but had just 138 yards through the air. He also threw two interceptions and had no touchdown passes, but did rush a ball in near the end of the game. In fact, it gave the Broncos a chance, but an offsides penalty in the final moments allowed the Seahawks to keep possession and run out the clock.

When asked if Nix was jittery early, Payton didn’t think that at all.

“No. I didn’t. I thought he seemed calm, poised. I felt like he was very comfortable and ready,” Payton said.

The questions kept coming about Nix, but Payton again blamed the receivers and also the running game.

“I think this, I don’t know how many balls we dropped,” Payton said. “For any quarterback playing, we’ve got to be more effective running the football… not nearly good enough.”

The Broncos running backs combined for 20 carries for only 64 yards. Javonte Williams, Jaleel McLaughlin and rookie Audric Estime couldn’t get much going on the ground. Payton continued to point to that for the loss, not Nix.

“We’ve just got to be better around him. That’s my impressions from just watching it without looking at the tape,” Payton said.

We’ll see how the Broncos adjust moving forward, but for now, Payton is saying this isn’t a Nix problem. It’s his first NFL start, so some slack is to be expected, but the head coach wasn’t pointing the finger the rookie’s way at all.

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