Getty

Denver Broncos quarterback Bo Nix.

As the entire nation prepares for its first look at Denver Broncos rookie quarterback Bo Nix on Monday Night Football, the mystery surrounding the 2024 first-round pick is already out.

Nothing is good. And he’s getting better every week.

That’s why 33rd Team’s Jeff Diamond has Nix at No. 1 on his list of Biggest Steals in the 2024 NFL Draft ahead of the Broncos’ nationally televised home game against the Cleveland Browns in Week 13.

“Since quarterback is the game’s most important position and Bo Nix was the sixth QB taken in this year’s first round (No. 12 overall), his overall play this season puts him at the top of my draft steals list. list,” Diamond wrote. “…Among first-round rookie QBs, Nix ranks second behind No. 2 overall pick Jayden Daniels with 2,548 yards and an 89.9 passer rating. He is ahead of top pick Caleb Williams in both categories, although he lacks a dominant receiver other than Courtland Sutton. Nix also passed for 300 yards and four touchdowns, second on the team.”

The Broncos are 7-5 in the seventh and final playoff spot in the AFC heading into their game against the Browns. Denver hasn’t made the playoffs since winning the Super Bowl after the 2015 season and hasn’t had a winning season since 2016.

Nix’s teammates call him the “MVP” of the turnaround

Nix’s teammates went out of their way to praise him after his standout performance in the Broncos’ 38-6 win over the Atlanta Falcons in Week 11. Nix was brilliant against the Falcons, completing 28 of 33 passes for 307 yards and 4 touchdowns and no interceptions.

“He is him,” Broncos All-Pro cornerback Pat Surtain II told ESPN’s Jeff Legwold. “I told him, ‘Man, you’re trying to be MVP, right now you don’t even look like offensive rookie of the year, it looks more like MVP.’ Just a will for him. He puts in the work.”

Nix has seemingly turned the race for NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year into a dead heat between himself and Washington Commanders quarterback Daniels in the home stretch of the season. No Broncos player has won the award since running back Clinton Portis rushed for 1,508 yards and scored 17 total touchdowns in 2022.

Where Nix is ​​one of the 2024 rookie QBs

The 2024 NFL Draft made history with its run on offensive players – a record 14 offensive players were taken early in the first round, including a record 6 quarterbacks, with Nix taken sixth.

Of those six quarterbacks, Minnesota Vikings quarterback JJ McCarthy is out for the season with an injury, and Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Penix Jr. serves as Kirk Cousins’ backup.

Of the other two starters besides Nix and Daniels, New England Patriots quarterback Drake Maye didn’t take over for Jacoby Brissett until Week 4, but is 2-5 as a starter.

Chicago Bears quarterback and No. 1 overall pick Caleb Williams was named the starter shortly after being drafted and is 4-8 as a starter following a loss to the Detroit Lions on Thanksgiving Day that led to the firing of head coach Matt Eberflus .

Tony Adame covers the NFL for Heavy.com, with a focus on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Washington Commanders and Denver Broncos. A veteran sportswriter and editor since 2004, his work has been featured at Stadium Talk, Yardbarker, NW Florida Daily News and Pensacola News Journal. More about Tony Adame