Broncos legend says the quiet part out loud about Bo Nix and Denver's QB competition

I have to give NFL analyst Mark Schlereth a ton of credit for his latest criticism of the Denver Broncos franchise. He is a legend in Denver from his playing days under Mike Shanahan. Schlereth won Super Bowls as the star guard along Alex Gibbs' elite offensive line. Now that he has become a prominent voice in sports media, calling games and whatnot over on FOX, what he says about Denver matters.

On the Stinkin' Truth Podcast, Schlereth said the quiet part out loud when it comes to first-round pick Bo Nix. Denver reached on the former Oregon star and Auburn quarterback with the No. 12 overall selection. He was the sixth quarterback taken. The seventh came off the board in day three to the New Orleans Saints. If Nix was a can't-miss prospect for the Broncos, why are we even doubting him?

Schlereth had to say this about incumbent Jarrett Stidham looking like the Broncos' QB1 over Nix.

"If Bo Nix isn't your starter, then did you miss on Bo Nix? Everything they said coming out of the draft was, 'Bo Nix started 61 games, has a supercomputer as a processor, is incredibly accurate, was the best college red-zone QB in the nation, had the best completion percentage, [and] never fumbled while at Oregon.'" 

Here is the episode of the Stinkin' Truth Podcast where Schlereth made us doubt Nix even more.

Admittedly, I don't want to see Nix fail with the Broncos, but this sounds a lot like Kenny Pickett...

Mark Schlereth questions if the Denver Broncos whiffed on Bo Nix

Like Pickett two years ago, Nix was seen as the most pro-ready quarterback in his draft class. He started all five years in college, three at his father's alma mater of Auburn before transferring to Oregon to be a total rockstar for Dan Lanning up in Eugene for his last two. While he dealt with total chaos in Auburn, which is expected, he was propped up by two elite coordinators while at Oregon.

Even if nobody is going to come out of the Allen Greene debacle of firing Gus Malzahn and then hiring Bryan Harsin well, Lanning is Kirby Smart's greatest protege. Factor in that Kenny Dillingham is now a Power Four head coach and Will Stein is well on his way towards being one in 2025, and there you go. Nix's in-game experience and leadership traits are being put to the test in his first NFL training camp.

I said it before and I will say it again. The absolute last thing you want is for the veterans on a team, you know, the ones with wives and kids at home and mortgages to pay, to doubt if this rookie wunderkind quarterback is really all that special. Denver drafted Nix to have him be the face of their franchise. He may very well could be, but you cannot have him ride pine behind Stidham this season.

Even though I am certain that Broncos head coach Sean Payton will give him every benefit of the doubt, you don't need to lower the rim for Nix. If he was really that much of an All-Star in the former Pac-12 playing for the Ducks, let him prove it to his Denver teammates. Should he fail as a first-year starter, that might be better for Denver. The Broncos will stink and could draft a quaterback top-five.

If no other NFL franchise is on record for saying that they had a first-round grade on Nix besides Denver, then I will have what the Broncos are having. The air may be thin up there, but you have to be smarter about these things, folks. Again, I want Nix to succeed, but I find the Broncos too inherently dysfunctional to trust under any capacity. Honestly, just let Schlereth run the team as this point...

If Nix cannot beat out Stidham, the Broncos will have bigger problems than even trying to win games.