Mark Kiszla: If Broncos coach Sean Payton can't find way to get quarterback Bo Nix in end zone, he must send rookie to bench

If you name Bo Nix the starting quarterback as a rookie, but don’t allow him the freedom to make NFL throws and the space to make rookie mistakes, what’s the flippin’ point?

After a 13-6 home loss to Pittsburgh in a stadium that felt dispirited by the same-old feeling of hopelessness, Broncos Country turns its disheartened eyes to you, Sean Payton.

“What scheme fits our players? And what scheme fits our quarterback?” Payton wondered aloud Sunday, after eight quarters of this NFL season has rewarded his Broncos with no victories and one lousy touchdown.

I’m not sure if Payton’s old West Coast scheme, flickering like a faded lava lamp, fits the year 2024 and how pro football is played now.

But this scheme certainly isn’t getting anywhere near the best out of Nix, who’s averaging a paltry 4.48 yards every time he drops back to pass.

And the scheme has rapidly become a snooze fest for Broncomaniacs, forced to watch the Denver offense sputter and cough to less than a point per offensive possession.

“I think it’s important to keep a good perspective and not make football your entire life, because if you play it long enough, it will fail you over and over and over. It will knock you down, it will beat you up,” said Nix, keeping a stiff upper lip, despite looking as inept through two professional starts as Paxton Lynch did in a Denver uniform.

For those of you keeping score at home, in two games as a hopelessly lost rookie back in 2016, Lynch led the Broncos to more points, passed for more yards, threw for more TDs and fewer interceptions than the mess Nix has made during his two weeks on the field as Payton’s prized protege.

“We have to start really looking at who we are asking to do what,” Payton said.

It seems to me that the Broncos are asking Nix to play quarterback Payton’s way rather than what made him a first-round draft pick. Nix threw for 8,101 yards and 74 touchdowns, while averaging more than four points per drive, during his two seasons at Oregon.

In Washington, rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels looks more like the dynamic player he was at Louisiana State because the Commanders have melded their offensive scheme to what made Daniels productive in college.

Although the streetball tendencies of Russell Wilson drove Payton to distraction, when did Nix look most dangerous against the Steelers?

On a trick play that began with a direct snap to Javonte Williams followed by a lateral that led to a 49-yard completion to Josh Reynolds, or on the rare snaps when Nix operated in an empty backfield with a spread look that accentuated his ability to rapidly process Pittsburgh’s defensive coverage.

“The NFL is a complex league. I think it’s hard to be simple in the league, because the defenses (are) game-planning and scheming you up, too,” Nix said. “So, if you’re too simple, they’ll just pick you apart.”

The fine line for Payton: How to take the kid gloves off Nix without hanging him out to dry?

Harsh truth be told, the Broncos have set Nix up for failure because they lack the elite offensive pieces to help a young quarterback to succeed.

Courtland Sutton isn’t a legit No.1 receiver. Williams has lost the pop to be an impact running back. Neither Mike McGlinchey nor Garett Bolles is a foundational tackle on which to build.

So maybe the best thing about this 0-2 start?

Denver appears headed for a top-five pick in the next NFL draft, allowing the Broncos a shot at Colorado’s Travis Hunter, built to be a game-changer in his first pro start.

“My confidence is bigger than football. It’s bigger than wins and losses” said Nix, whose quarterback rating after two games is 47.5, less than half of the 98.0 that sent Russell Wilson packing from Denver a season ago.

But If Payton doesn’t have the humility to change his scheme to fit the strengths of Nix, then the coach must at least exhibit the humanity to sit his rookie on the Denver bench.

Why?

With blitzing linebackers buzzing and the sky falling around a rookie NFL quarterback, a seat on the bench can give him room to breathe.

Without a shred of positive reinforcement, football can be such a brutal game it’s capable of breaking even a resolute and strong young quarterback’s confidence.

If Payton can’t find a way to show Nix to the end zone on a regular basis, the constant failure will push him toward the scrap heap littered with so many young QBs.