ENGLEWOOD, Colo. (AP) — Things won’t get any easier for Denver Broncos rookie quarterback Bo Nix the rest of this month.
Mike Macdonald won his debut as Pete Carroll’s successor in Seattle with a dominant defense that throttled Nix, the 12th overall pick in the draft, whose touchdown run in the closing minutes Sunday made the Broncos’ 26-20 loss at least look respectable.
Up next, Mike Tomlin’s Pittsburgh Steelers, who visit Denver on Sunday. That’ll be followed by an East Coast trip to face Todd Bowles’ Tampa Bay Buccaneers on the front end and Robert Salah’s New York Jets on the back.
That’s four of the NFL’s best defensive minds right out of the gate for Nix, who won Denver’s starting quarterback job this summer on the strength of his efficiency when he led the Broncos on six scoring drives in seven preseason possessions.
That was against the Colts’ and Packers’ backups, however, and even the backups’ backups.
Welcome, Mr. Nix, to the real NFL, where vanilla defenses don’t exist, road games are deafening and coordinators scheme day and night to exploit green QBs.
Broncos coach Sean Payton said after the game that the loss in Nix’s deficient debut had as much to do with Denver’s bumbling and stumbling supporting cast than with the rookie who started more games in college — 61 at Auburn and Oregon — than any quarterback in NCAA history.
There was the leaky line, dropped passes early on, running backs tripping over themselves.
Payton called Denver’s pass protection “average at best” and at one point went to the bench to admonish the offense, pleading, “Let’s go! … Let’s help this guy.”
After watching the film Monday, Payton doubled down on his defense of Nix and in blaming his teammates for not doing enough to help out the rookie.
“We need to be better around him,” Payton said. “And we will be.”
To be sure, though, Nix was off the mark aplenty in his pro debut.
He threw 42 passes, completing 26 for a meager 132 yards with no touchdowns, two interceptions — both into double coverage — and two sacks for a paltry 47.5 passer rating.
Not many of his passes went beyond the sticks or even the line of scrimmage, and his 3.3 yards per pass attempt brought back memories of Tim Tebow, who averaged 2.7 yards per throw in a 7-3 loss to Kansas City during the 2011 season.
Right tackle Mike McGlinchey saw the upside in Nix’s uneven debut.
“It’s not an easy place to come in and play, especially for your first NFL start,” McClinchey said. “Certainly there were things that happened with cadence and silent count and all that kind of stuff to make it harder on him. But I thought he handled it well. I thought he was composed. I thought he did a great job commanding the huddle and showing he can be a leader.
“I know he’s going to attack film and get better, just like all of us.”
What’s working
Denver’s pass rush. Jonathon Cooper sacked Geno Smith on the game’s opening snap and his second sack forced Smith to throw an interception by linebacker and newly minted defensive captain Alex Singleton.
What needs help
Broncos running backs. Javante Williams averaged 2.9 yards on eight carries and had a pair of big stumbles with the end zone in his sight, and Jaleel McLauglin averaged 2.7 yards on 10 carries and lost a fumble. Rookie Audric Estime carried twice for 14 yards but fumbled on his first NFL carry. A year ago, he fumbled his first carry for Notre Dame and didn’t drop the ball again the rest of the season.
Stock up
The Broncos coverage units on special teams were spectacular as was Denver’s bolstered defensive line that produced a pair of safeties in the first half.
Stock down
The Broncos running back room was supposed to be Nix’s best friend but Denver’s leading rusher was Nix himself with five scrambles for 35 yards and a touchdown.
Payton pointed the finger even at himself.
“As coaches, we’ve got to evaluate the run plan and why it wasn’t as effective as we would like,” he said. “It’s going to be hard to (play) quarterback period if that’s the best we can do running the ball.”
Injuries
LT Garett Bolles has a sprained and badly bruised ankle but X-rays were negative.
Key number
7 — three-and-outs for the Broncos offense.
Next steps
The Broncos need to get their ground game going against the Steelers on Sunday so that Nix can settle in and find a rhythm with his receivers.
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