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Denver Broncos rookie quarterback Bo Nix will make his first preseason start on Sunday against the Green Bay Packers, head coach Sean Payton said Friday.
Quarterbacks Jarrett Stidham and Zach Wilson will each get playing time after Nix on Sunday, Payton added.
Stidham started the Broncos’ season opener against the Indianapolis Colts last weekend and completed 4 of 7 passes for 37 yards and an interception.
Nix impressed as a relief pitcher, completing 15 of 21 passes for 125 yards and a touchdown against the Colts, and could gain an advantage in the race for the starting quarterback with a strong performance on Sunday.
“We’ll see Bo start in Phase 1, Stiddy in Phase 2 and then Zach in Phase 3,” Payton told reporters Friday.
Payton said earlier this week at the The Up & Adams Show that he would not name a starting quarterback until he could confirm the starters for all positions.
“The band is still playing, they’ve got one more song to go, two more songs,” Payton said. “In other words, I’m not going to name the cornerback between Riley (Moss) and (Damarri) Mathis. That means I’m not doing that at those other positions.”
However, the head coach confirmed that the second warm-up game was “important” and that the team was “close” to making a decision about the regular players.
Payton had previously told reporters that Nix would get most of his first-team action in the week leading up to the Packers game, which would prepare the rookie for his first preseason appearance.
Nix, the No. 12 pick in the 2024 NFL Draft from Oregon, was originally expected to compete with Stidham and Wilson for the starting job, but he was listed third behind the team’s two more experienced NFL quarterbacks on the Broncos’ first unofficial roster released before training camp.
However, after Nix led the Broncos’ offense in his preseason debut, scoring on four of five possessions, it looks like the 2024 first-round pick could climb up the rankings.
Payton must decide whether to go with Nix or use Stidham, last season’s backup, before the Broncos’ season opener on September 8 against the Seattle Seahawks.
