Bo Nix reports might be all smoke and mirrors after all
By Jake Beckman
We’ve heard news of the Denver Broncos rookie quarterback Bo Nix playing well and grabbing the starting position. Then on Tuesday morning, the Broncos released their unofficial depth chart and Nix is shockingly low.
He’s not just behind Jarrett Stidham, the player he was primarily competing with, but he’s also behind Zach Wilson, which tells us everything we need to know about how much UDCs matter.
Bo Nix listed as QB3 on Broncos' first unofficial depth chart
If you’re a Broncos fan, seeing Nix behind Stidham and Wilson should scare you because you would think that even someone who has never touched a football before would be higher on the depth chart than Wilson, much less a first-round draft pick.
Starting QB news:
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) August 6, 2024
— #Panther coach Dave Canales told reporters Bryce Young will not play Thursday.
— The #Broncos list QB Jarrett Stidham as the starting QB on their unofficial depth chart.
It turns out that Nix’s spot on the depth chart is due to him being a rookie. Every rookie on the Broncos’ first UDC is either last or second to last on the depth chart. Bo Nix is QB3, Jonah Elliss is SLB3, Troy Franklin is a WR6, Kris Abrams-Draine is LCB4, Audric Estimé is RB5, Devaughn Vele is also a WR6, and Nick Gargiulo is LG3.
As Broncos insider Benjamin Allbright of KOA Colorado points out, the unofficial depth chart "means nothing" regarding who has the edge in competitions for starting jobs. In fact, Allbright says Stidham "is the placeholder til Nix takes the job, which he will at some point."
Means nothing.
— Benjamin Allbright (@AllbrightNFL) August 6, 2024
Stidham is the placeholder til Nix takes the job, which he will at some point.
Unofficial depth chart means nothing https://t.co/0frdqcwgXU
Given the number of first-team reps Bo Nix has had, there’s absolutely no chance that seeing his name under Wilson moved his competitive needle. Ryan McFadden of the Denver Post points out that Nix received first-team reps in five of the last even practices, as of Aug. 5.
It’d be understandable if you just put him behind Stidham because that’s who he’s competing with, but to put him behind one of the worst quarterbacks in recent history? That’s blatant and egregious.
It's also kind of mean to Wilson. He definitely knows his place by now, and to give him a shred of hope that he could possibly be a part of the Broncos’ QB competition seems like some sort of mental torture.
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