The Denver Broncos are now 6-2 and first in the AFC West, where Bo Nix came out and performed lights-out against the division rival.
Dan Orlovsky made this argument in September. On ESPN’s “First Take” on Monday, a day after Denver beat the Kansas City Chiefs 28-24, he sharpened it:
Thanks for the submission!
“They got the most clutch quarterback in football right now and it was laughed at. Bo Nix is the most clutch quarterback in the NFL.”
•
Looking to predict NFL playoff Scenarios? Try our NFL Playoff Predictor for real-time simulations and stay ahead of the game!
The game supplied the evidence. Denver trailed 24-13 in the fourth quarter at Empower Field at Mile High and scored the last 15 points, sealing the win when Malcolm Roach sacked Patrick Mahomes on fourth-and-goal on the final snap. Nix went 20 of 32 for 222 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions, a 103.9 passer rating. Both scoring throws came on fourth-and-goal: 1 yard to Jaylen Waddle before halftime, 2 yards to Nate Adkins in the fourth quarter. Nix also hit Waddle for the two-point conversion that made it 24-21, and rookie Jonah Coleman turned a short throw into 51 yards after Harrison Butker missed from 54.
Orlovsky did not pretend the rest was pretty.
“I understand that the play through the first three quarters of every game looks like what the heck is going on. Rightfully so,” he said. “He’s 25-3 when trailing since the start of 2025. That’s outrageous. He’s the most clutch guy in ball right now.”
Sunday produced Bo Nix‘s 15th game-winning drive and his 12th fourth-quarter comeback since he entered the league in 2024, totals tied for the most by a quarterback in his first three seasons, according to Sports Illustrated. He has thrown 164 passes across five games without an interception.
Orlovsky pushed back on what the result said about Denver, claiming that Bo Nix and the Broncos’ performance was more about “exposing” the Chiefs.
“I think yesterday is a little bit more of a statement by Kansas City. They’ve been exposed and so there’s nothing that I look at from this game perspective and sit there and say I learned something new about Denver,” he said, calling the Broncos “one of the best in the NFL.”
The flaw he does concede is the slow start: Denver went three-and-out on all three third-quarter possessions and converted 2 of 11 third downs. Despite Dan Orlovsky’s praise, Nix needs to perform better to prove himself, as Stephen A. Smith argued.
The Broncos star ranks 20th in passing yards with 1,493 yards, only 10 more than Cam Ward, and ranks 18th with 9 TD passes. Despite a winning record, Nix ranks with the quarterbacks of struggling teams, which could potentially hinder the Broncos’ playoff run
AFC West and playoff picture: What Bo Nix and Broncos’ win changes
Denver is 6-2 and first in the AFC West, a half-game ahead of the 5-2 Chiefs, who have lost two straight. The teams split the season series, and Kansas City holds the better division record, the tiebreaker if they finish level. The Broncos climbed to the AFC’s No. 2 seed behind the 6-1 Buffalo Bills and would host the seventh-seeded New England Patriots if the season ended today. Kansas City fell to fifth and would open at Jacksonville. Denver visits Carolina in Week 9, then takes its bye; the Chiefs host the Jets.
Edited by Aman Kashyap
