Broncos QB Bo Nix showed something with “gutsy” performance against Chiefs, but troubling trend continues

Given the opponent and the environment Sunday, the Broncos offense and rookie quarterback Bo Nix did a lot of good things.

Kansas City boasts one of the NFL’s most formidable defenses, and veteran coordinator Steve Spagnuolo can tie quarterbacks of any experience level in a knot. Arrowhead Stadium might have been hosting a day game for the first time this season, but it was loud under the afternoon sunshine.

Payton called Nix’s performance “gutsy” after the game and it was that.

The rookie completed 22 of 30 passes for 215 yards and a pair of first-half touchdowns. He finished with a passer rating of 115.3 and had the best estimated points per dropback of his career so far, according to the NFL’s Next Gen Stats.

“I’m not really surprised with anything that kid does anymore,” tight end Adam Trautman said. “He’s been unbelievable under pressure. In all those games, even when we’re down — you felt it the week before in Baltimore and you’ve felt it all year. He has extreme poise and he’s got confidence in what we’re doing, in the game plan, in his ability, in our offense’s ability.

“You can’t say enough good things about him and that’s how everyone feels in this building. And we should. He’s earned the right to that. We believe in him and he’s been impressive.”

For the Broncos offense to take the next step, though, there’s a critical area he and the offense must improve on. Or, more to the point, a part of the game: the second half.

Denver didn’t score after halftime Sunday against the Chiefs. After rolling up 192 yards on 29 plays in the first two quarters, the Broncos had just 62 on 26 snaps in the second half.

Even that stretch of four possessions featured some good: The closing drive was clinical and featured a trio of third-down conversions from Nix and company to set up the ill-fated game-winning field goal attempt.

But before that came three empty drives that ended in punts and netted just 10 yards.

“The third quarter, we didn’t have the time of possession we were looking for,” head coach Sean Payton said Monday. “The rally drive at the end was good. You know you’re playing a good team. We felt third down was going to be important in that game if all things were even. What I mean by that is assuming that there were no turnovers — and that was the case yesterday — then when you look at the third-down numbers, we were good in that area. We played that team better than we have in the past offensively with what they do.”

Sunday wasn’t the first time recently the Broncos have struggled to score after halftime. In fact, they have been shut out in each of the past two weeks and have just one offensive touchdown in their past three second halves.

Those games were all different types: Protecting a big lead against Carolina, chasing a big deficit against Baltimore and then a tight game at Kansas City.

They’ve all followed similar arcs on offense, though. The Broncos averaged 209.7 yards per first half and 5.5 yards per play.

In the second half: just 100.7 yards and 3.6 per play.

“It has been inconsistent, and we’ve gone on strings in really all of those games where, two or three drives in a row it’s three-and-out or you get one first down in there,” Trautman said. “I don’t know. We’ve just kind of got to — I think we have stuck true to our game plan and everything, sometimes they just hit you with a certain pressure or they have a better call than you at times. Stuff happens that way. As players, too, there’s maybe an assignment here and an assignment there or you come out of halftime and you’re dragging a little bit or something. Which, obviously, we can’t do.

“The third quarter was disappointing yesterday because we didn’t really move the ball.”

Though the defense played well against the Chiefs throughout the game, Kansas City did mount two field goal drives after second-half Broncos punts to turn a 14-10 halftime lead for Denver into a 16-14 edge for the Chiefs.

Denver did eventually mount a beauty of a drive in their closing march. But then came the field goal block.

“We’ve faced a lot of good teams this year and have been in one-possession games, it feels like, in every single one of them,” Nix said Sunday. “We’re close, we just have to find ways to get over the hump, find ways to make a play when they don’t and make the play that wins it. In this league, that’s the line between playoff teams, championship teams and all the other guys. We’re here to fight. We don’t have a bunch of guys that are going to hang their heads and quit. We’re going to continue to fight and battle.

“Each week is going to have something else in store and we just have to respond.”

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