Sean Payton took the training wheels off the Denver Broncos offense in the 26-7 win over the Buccaneers.
And the result was an explosive-filled first drive.
Bo Nix and the offense executed better than they have all year as Denver dismantled unbeaten Tampa Bay.
Sean Payton took the training wheels off Broncos offense the first drive
Through the first two weeks of the Bo Nix Era, Denver’s offense was bland. It was boring. It was easy to predict and simple to stop.
In those first two games, more than two-thirds Nix’s throws came within 10 yards of the line of scrimmage. To wit: 13 passes (16.8%) were at or behind the LOS, 39 throws (50.1%) were within 10 yards, 25 passes (32.5%) were more than 10 yards. And all four of his interceptions came on throws of 15 yards or longer.
After the Week 2 loss to the Steelers, a reporter asked Payton about Nix’s struggles on throws past 10 yards.
“I don’t know how many attempted passes of 10-yards or more down the field [he has],” Payton responded. “So maybe you’re referencing he just hasn’t had as many 10-yards-or-more down the field. We go in each week with a number of designed shots.”
In Week 3, Payton’s number of designed shots shot up. Especially early. And more explosive plays were the result.
On the first play from scrimmage, Nix hit Courtland Sutton on a 22-yard out route. Two plays later, Nix connected with Josh Reynolds on a 31-yard deep corner into the red zone. Nix capped the drive with a play-action, roll-out touchdown run.
The training wheels were finally off for that first drive. And Nix responded with accuracy, leadership, and a touchdown.
“When you start the game with an explosive pass play, you get ‘Court’ involved early, you win a one-on-one, you flip the field of play–it opens it up for a coordinator,” Nix said of that first drive. “We hit Josh on the other side and then we get points and we get a touchdown on that first drive. That’s really important to start explosive, but you can’t just hit one. You have to come back and continue to finish out drives.”
Week 3 was Bo Nix’s best game as an NFL starter
After that first drive, Payton got conservative again with the offense. But, it worked.
Denver scored on 6-of-10 drives, punting only twice. Their methodical, 15-play drive in the third quarter went 79 yards and ended with a field goal make, but it also sapped 7:57 off the clock.
“I feel like we wanted to be aggressive early and run it later in the game,” Payton explained. “All of those things happened.”
And Nix played his first game as a professional without a turnover. The Broncos won the turnover battle for the first time this year, and won the game easily.
Besides the turnover-free play, it was the best overall game for Nix as a pro.
His 69.4 completion percentage was the highest of his career and closer to his numbers at Oregon. Along those same lines, Nix’s completion percentage over expectation (CPOE) was +4.3% (Week 1: -7.0%, Week 2: -7.1%). Simply, he was more accurate than expected on more difficult throws, like deep ones and passes to the sidelines.
And Nix’s 85.0 passer rating was his highest yet, just like his QBR 80.6.
Taking the training wheels off for Bo Nix was the best thing Payton could have done. Even if he did regress to the conservative play calling after the first drive.
Why did he open it up on that first drive?
Payton possibly heard through the grapevine from James Palmer that the Steelers corners laughed about how limited Denver’s offense was. And Bo Nix, too.
Or maybe the head coach was tired of watching a pathetic offense on tape every week. And tired of hearing rumblings that the game has passed him by.
Going forward, Payton needs to continue to call more deep passes for Nix and the offense. He needs to let the kid ride without training wheels.