Bo Nix is about to start his sixth game, while Drake Maye is set to start his first.

When it comes to rookie quarterbacks, there’s no surefire approach to playing them. But throwing Nix into the fire has already paid dividends. Meanwhile, Maye has been backing up Jacoby Brissett in New England, watching and waiting.

Some quarterbacks wait for years behind an incumbent, while others start immediately; both approaches have worked. But for a young, inexperienced team, starting Nix was the right way to go.

Bo Nix has been starting, learning along the way, while Drake Maye only now will play

The first two weeks of Bo Nix’s NFL career were hard to watch. The rookie was simply awful, throwing four interceptions in those games, including two in the red zone. While it wasn’t all his fault the Broncos lost, they did start 0-2 and it looked like 2024 would be a long season.

Then, Sean Payton took the training wheels off the offense and Nix flourished against the Buccaneers. We finally saw some explosive pass plays as Denver jumped out to a quick lead on the previously unbeaten Bucs and never looked back.

Then Nix faced his first adverse weather game in New Jersey against the Jets. It was so rainy, the rookie couldn’t even grip the ball to throw it and ended the first half with -7 passing yards. The Broncos trailed 6-0 at the break, but they rallied and came back thanks to his timely throws. Including his first touchdown pass to Courtland Sutton to win the game.

At 2-2, the Raiders game last week was somewhat pivotal. Denver had a chance to rise above .500 and beat a divisional opponent or fall behind, like they have many times for years. Las Vegas jumped out to a 10-0 lead before Nix and the Broncos hung 34 unanswered points on them to win with ease.

Denver’s defense deserves lots of praise for the win, no doubt. But it was also Nix’s best game as a professional, with his highest passer rating (117.2), completion percentage (70.4%), and most touchdowns (2) passing. He also ran a score in, or dove it in over the top, if you wish.

On one hand, Nix is only five games into his career. It’s still very early. On the other, he’s gone through a whole host of game situations, taken his lumps, and shown growth.

By starting him in Week 1, Payton set the Broncos up for success. They’re in the heat of a playoff race, and every game seems to help Nix get more comfortable.

Meanwhile, No. 3 overall pick Drake Maye is about to make his first start against the 4-1 Houston Texans this weekend. While the Patriots (1-4) are possibly the NFL’s worst team, Houston is a legitimate Super Bowl contender. They’ve allowed a 3rd-lowest 154 passing yards per game, and have racked up 15 sacks.

Good luck, rook.

When the season started, the Broncos were expected to be one of the worst teams in the league, too. That’s not to say Nix alone is the reason why they’re currently 3-2, the defense is playing phenomenally. But by getting Bo Nix experience–unlike Drake Maye–the Broncos are in position to stay in the playoff race for the rest of the season.

Nix has been far from perfect, but experience is helping him grow quickly

Before the season kicked off, there was a “quarterback competition” between Nix and Jarrett Stidham. But most Broncos fans, and media members, knew Nix was going to be the starter.

Jordan Palmer, former NFL coach and head of QB development for the XFL, went on the Rich Eisen Show to discuss the incoming rookies. Specifically, Bo Nix and Drake Maye.

“I just think that Bo Nix was so ready…Part of it is the most starts Bo’s had,” Palmer explained on why Nix was ready to go from Week 1. “But part of it is a lot of these high picks have never dealt with adversity…Bo Nix was on some bad Auburn teams and blamed for a lot of it. He has failed before. And then went to Oregon and succeeded. So I think his context of what it takes to play franchise quarterback, he has a lot of that…I get what Sean saw in him and I absolutely get the decision to ‘Let’s roll him out there right now and go.’”

Conversely, as Palmer alluded to, Maye didn’t face much adversity in college. He redshirted one year, and then started two seasons before being drafted No. 3 overall.

And maybe Nix’s experience with adverse situations is helping him push through struggles now, as the Broncos quarterback.

Speaking of struggles, even in his best game yet in Week 5, Nix left a lot of yards on the field with poor decisions, bad footwork, and rookie play.

As Josh Stecklein points out, Nix has a tendency of going to checkdown routes when he has open receivers deep. He sometimes doesn’t even look at the deeper receivers.

Similarly, on the second play he has an open receiver on a medium-depth crossing route, but hits the shallow crosser instead.

On this play, if he could have led Troy Franklin, the rookie receiver could’ve gained more yards.

Keep in mind that these are somewhat minor issues. They’re areas of improvement for Nix, and places he’ll have to work on going forward. Can he overcome the checkdown tendencies and happy feet in the pocket? Yes, certainly. It all takes time.

The more experience a quarterback gets under their belt, the better chance they have at success. That’s why, again, it was smart for Payton to start him immediately.

And while he has a lot of areas to improve on, this throw to Josh Reynolds for a touchdown was something for the youngster to hang his hat on. It was picture-perfect.

Nix and the Broncos (3-2) face the tough Chargers defense (2-2) in the Mile High City this Sunday, with a 2:05 p.m. MDT kickoff.