INDIANAPOLIS — Jarrett Stidham got a bum deal.
Then again, them are the breaks when a first-round quarterback is closing in and ready to go.
And Bo does look ready.
Bo Nix, the Broncos’ No. 12 overall draft selection in late April, entered the preseason opener late in the first quarter here Sunday and led his team to a field goal, touchdown, field goal and touchdown off his four full possessions.
The Broncos defeated the Indianapolis Colts, 34-30 in a turnover-filled preseason opener before a Sunday afternoon crowd of 63,528 at roof-closed Lucas Oil Stadium.
Nix finished his day 15 for 21 passing for 125 yards with a 1-yard scoring pass to Marvin Mims Jr. late in the first half. Nix also had runs of 6 and 11 yards to set up his touchdown strike.
"I felt real good today,'' Nix said. "We executed well. Our guys were in the right spots. We moved the ball effeciently a lot of the day and that usually turns into points.''
OK, so it's just one preseason game. But after suffering through seven consecutive losing seasons, go ahead and start believing in the kid, Broncos fans. Nix appears to be the real deal.
"I thought he was awesome,'' said tight end Greg Dulcich, who was making a comeback from injuries with this game. "He had great command. Great leadership. Made some great plays."
Stidham, the veteran incumbent starter, played well in his two series but the rest of his offense failed him. He began with back-to-back completions for 13 yards to Courtland Sutton and 14 yards to Tim Patrick, quickly moving the ball to the Colts’ 29.
But that promising drive was killed by three consecutive penalties against the Broncos. Patrick was flagged for taunting after making his first catch since 2021 – he missed the entire 2022 and 2023 seasons because of injures -- and Sutton and right tackle Mike McGlinchey committed false starts.
Stidham moved the Broncos on their second possession from their own 27 to the Indy 47 but a holding penalty on left tackle Garett Bolles was followed by running back Samaje Perine bobbling a perfect pass to his hands and into the arms of Colts’ cornerback Kenny Moore II for an interception.
"I thought we moved the ball really well, we sort of shot ourselves in the foot with those first two drives," Stidham said. "But a lot of good I thought.''
That was it for Stidham, who gave way to Nix after 11 plays. The rest of the first-team offense stayed out there for another 11 plays with Nix.
"I knew I was only going a little bit in the first quarter so I knew it was coming at some point,'' Stidham said. "Obviously, didn't want to go out that way but I can't really control that."
After missing his first two passes, Nix scrambled left, threw off his off-foot and completed a 22-yard pass to Sutton along the left sideline to convert a third and 10.
"That was a big play, a big third down conversion there,'' Nix said. "Court did a good job of making his guy fall off and he had a good one-on-one and he did a good job of being aware of the sideline. I looked up and he was open and those are always the good ones."
On second and 8, Nix hit Josh Reynolds on a quick sideline pattern for 11 yards. But on first and 10 from the Colts’ 21, Nix fumbled the exchange from center Luke Wattenberg. Nix recovered but momentum of the drive was lost and the Broncos settled for a Wil Lutz 41-yard field goal that tied the game, 3-3 early in the second quarter.
Nix and Wattenberg had snap issues during training camp as well.
Nix’ second drive was helped by two of his own runs – he scrambled for 6 yards to convert a third and 3 near midfield and kept the ball off a read option for 11 yards and a first down at the Indy 19.
On third and goal from the 1, Nix took the snap, reared up and threw quickly to the left end zone where Mims beat his man just past the goal line and the Broncos led 10-3.
Nix said Mims gave him the ball as a souvenir from his first professional TD pass.
"But I wound up handing it off,'' Nix said.
Wait for his first TD pass when it counts. Plan on Sept. 8 at Seattle.
After the Colts tied it with their own touchdown drive, Broncos’ tight end Lucas Krulll was in the middle of a wild, end-of-half, 2-minute drive sequence. First, he followed a reception from Nix by fumbling the ball away. The Colts had it at the Broncos’ 16. But on the next play Indy quarterback Sam Ehrlinger floated a pass that Broncos’ safety Keidron Smith intercepted and Nix got the ball back at his own 16 yard line with 1:24 left.
What did he do on his first two plays? He hit Krull and Krull again for 16 and 16 yards. The ball was out near midfield with 46 seconds left. A third down pass interference penalty on the Colts gave Denver the ball at the Indy 22 but Nix ran out of time and the Broncos settled for a 27-yard field goal from Lutz with seconds left in the half.
To open the second half, Nix made a precise throw to wide-open running back Jaleel McLaughlin wheeling out of the backfield for a 22-yard gain to set up first down at the Indy 13. Rookie running back Audric Estime finished the drive with a 2-yard touchdown run and the Broncos led 20-10 midway through the third quarter.
That was it for Nix, who at worst had an encouraging professional debut and at best is ready to become the Broncos' No. 1 quarterback. He will start in the Broncos' next preseason game, which is next Sunday against the Green Bay Packers at Empower Field at Mile High.
Asked specifically about Nix's performance, Broncos head coach Sean Payton didn't want to single out his rookie. After all, when Payton published his first depth chart last week, he listed Nix at No. 3 - behind Stidham and Zach Wilson.
“All three of those guys I thought did a good job,'' Payton said.
Indeed, Stidham, Nix and Wilson combined to complete 29 of 41 passes for 279 yards without taking a sack. But Nix's performance was special, especially for a professional debut.
“I thought he did a great job,'' Wilson said of Nix. "You see his athleticism, his ability to make those plays, move around a little bit. I think he’s a great athlete and thought he did a lot of great things. I’m excited for him and his future.”
The Broncos couldn't stay comfortable with a 10-point lead for long. With Wilson as the Broncos' third quarterback, Estime gave his score right back as he had the ball stripped by Colts defensive back Micah Abraham, who recovered and ran it back 45 yards for a touchdown, narrowing the score to 20-17 with 6:58 remaining in the third.
However, Wilson on the next series directed a 69-yard touchdown drive by completing passes of 11 yards to tight end Hunter Kampmoyer, 16 yards to Mims and 14 to Kampmoyer again. That set up an 11-yard touchdown run by running back Tyler Badie with 2:18 left in the third quarter.
Wilson was 10 of 13 for 117 yards. Broncos rookie running back Blake Watson scored a 6-yard touchdown run to boost the lead to 34-24 with 5:55 remaining.
“New team. New start,'' said Wilson, who played his first three seasons with the New York Jets. "Just trying to do the best I can to put our team in the best situation and I thought we had a lot of fun out there.”
SUGGESTED VIDEOS: Denver Broncos