While it’s not totally clear what it’s going to take for Denver Broncos second year quarterback Bo Nix to get his respect around the NFL — especially among the talking heads — what’s clear so far is it’s not anything he’s done to this point in his career.
The latest diss of Nix’s abilities came from The Ringer’s Sheil Kapadia, who made a point of saying he didn’t think Nix was better than New Orleans Saints quarterback Spencer Rattler, who is 1-12 as a starter through his first 2 seasons.
Even worse, Kapadia’s takedown of Nix came after he became the first quarterback in NFL history to throw for 2 touchdowns and rush for 2 touchdowns in a single quarter after he rallied Denver from a 19-0 deficit headed into the fourth quarter for a 33-32 win over the New York Giants in Week 7.
“I’m looking at all the numbers and I’m like, is there a difference between Bo Nix and Spencer Rattler?” Kapadia said on “The Ringer NFL Show” on October 21. “And people are like ‘Man, you’re a Bo Nix hater,’ and I don’t think that’s being a hater. I think if you watch both their skill sets and if you isolate their surroundings and you swap them, I don’t think you would see a major difference in performance.”
Nix is one of the NFL’s elite young quarterbacks. He led the Broncos to their first playoff appearance in 9 seasons as a rookie in 2024 and was runner-up for NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year and has them off to a 5-2 start this season.
The Saints are 1-6 and will almost certainly replace Rattler in the first round of the 2026 NFL draft, where they’re still in play to land the No. 1 overall pick.
Nix Part of Record Setting 2024 First Round
If things keep going how they’ve been going, there’s a good chance Nix could become one of the highest paid players in NFL history after the 2026 season, when he’s eligible for his first contract extension.
Nix is playing on the 4-year, $18.6 million contract he signed after the Broncos selected him at No. 12 overall in the 2024 NFL draft.
Currently, the 10 highest paid players in the NFL are all quarterbacks, led by Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott on a 4-year, $240 million contract that pays him $60 million per year.
The quarterbacks eligible for big time extensions after this season almost certainly won’t re-set the market with their deals, but the record-setting 6 quarterbacks taken in the first round of the 2024 draft certainly will.
Nix’s Extension Will Be Upwards of $300 Million
Out of those 6 quarterbacks, the top 3 all seem headed toward huge extensions; Chicago Bears quarterback Caleb Williams, Washington Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels and New England Patriots quarterback Drake Maye.
Of the next 3 quarterbacks taken in the first round — Nix, Minnesota Vikings quarterback J.J. McCarthy and Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Penix Jr., only Nix seems headed toward big money.
When that group resets the market, Nix could land a contract extension somewhere between $65 million to $70 million per season on what might be 5-year, $325 million contract extension.
Rattler, meanwhile, was a fifth round pick (No. 150 overall) in 2024 and is playing on a 4-year, $4.35 million contract but could very well be given a “prove it” contract for a team in the future — think something like the 1-year, $14 million contract Daniel Jones signed with the Indianapolis Colts for 2025.
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