Broncos' Bo Nix says his broken
ankle won't affect his offseason or hinder him once it heals
[January 29, 2026]
By ARNIE STAPLETON
ENGLEWOOD, Colo. (AP) — Bo Nix insists he'll be the same dual-threat
quarterback he was before breaking his right ankle in the playoffs
and missing the AFC championship game.
The Denver Broncos signal-caller said a simple misstep led to a
clean break and required a straightforward fix.
He said the injury was “nothing that concerns me, nothing that
scares me going forward like I'm injury-prone or anything. This is
one of those just inconvenient football plays and I'm excited
already to get back to work. I can't necessarily avoid anything in
the future, but I feel really good that my body's going to be in
good shape.”
Speaking on a conference call Wednesday, Nix said he was going to
take some time off anyway after the season, so his recovery and
rehab over the next several weeks won’t necessarily impede his
offseason training.
Nix also clarified two things about his injury. He said it was
independent of previous ankle issues he dealt with in high school
and college; and he said what made his injury inevitable wasn't a
predisposition — as coach Sean Payton described it a day earlier —
but a developing stress fracture that gave way to a full break.
Durability has never been an issue with Nix.
“I'd probably say four years, probably over 60 games straight of me
getting to play and not missing games,” Nix said. “So, I don't
really worry about the durability. Honestly, with a simple break
like this I'll feel as good as new, won't have any hiccups even
getting back going with training.
“I was going to give myself some time off anyway and this sort of
makes me take that time off work, won't be able to scratch the itch
and get back out there too early,” Nix added. “This will slow me
down, make sure I'm taking my rest. ... I'm still going to be
running around.”
Indeed, Nix was cruising around team headquarters this week on his
medical scooter so he could say his goodbyes to teammates and
coaches.
Nix said the injury “won't affect my training, won't affect my
season next year. If anything, it'll just allow me to go out there
and play more free knowing hey, there's nothing you can do about”
freak injuries.
Backup Jarrett Stidham replaced Nix on Sunday and he committed a
series of blunders, including a fumble at his own 12 that led to the
Patriots' only touchdown and helped New England advance to the Super
Bowl.
Sitting out the game “was terrible,” Nix said. “It was very
helpless. Wasn’t much I could do about it. It’s tough to see when
you go down, the show just keeps right on going. I think that’s the
toughest part. ... It was a bummer. It was tough. It was a tough
week.”
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Denver Broncos quarterback Bo Nix leaves the field after an NFL
divisional round playoff football game against the Buffalo Bills,
Saturday, Jan. 17, 2026, in Denver. (AP Photo/Jack Dempsey)
Nix watched the game from a suite at Empower Field
at Mile High after returning from Birmingham, Alabama, where Dr.
Norman E. Waldrop III, a foot and ankle specialist at the Andrews
Sports Medicine and Orthopedic Center, operated on his ankle.
He called the operation “a very quick procedure,
very easy operation, just a simple bone break. Got that fixed up.
Great surgeon. Great care. And just right back on my road to
recovery, a typical bone break, four to six weeks, I’ll be back
training.”
In his first public comments since getting hurt, Nix also said he
didn't realize the extent of his injury right away. Before going for
X-rays, he was celebrating Denver's 33-30 win on Wil Lutz's field
goal to cap a drive fueled by Ja'Quan McMillian's interception of
Josh Allen's deep pass.
Nix said he was crushed to learn his season was over.
“You go that long and you play that many games and you have that big
of a season and then it kind of comes to and end abruptly like that,
it stinks,” Nix said.
But, he added, “my sights are already on nest year and how I can be
better and lead this team better and play better. I'm just excited
for the offseason work and to get back to the physical part of
training.”
Nix has led the Broncos to back-to-back playoff appearances and tied
Russell Wilson's NFL record with 24 regular-season wins in his first
two years.
His early success has made his position coach, former NFL QB Davis
Webb, who just turned 31, a hot coaching candidate. Webb has
interviewed for the Las Vegas Raiders' head coaching job. Should he
stay in Denver, there's speculation he'll get a bigger role, maybe
even taking over play-calling duties from Sean Payton, who fired his
longtime right-hand man and offensive coordinator Joe Lombardi on
Tuesday.
“Davis is a tremendous coach,” Nix said. “He really knows how to
communicate with his players. ... I think highly of him. I know he's
a really good football coach and I know he's got a lot in store for
him in the future.”
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