The Denver Broncos have already downplayed it, but year after year, teams prove how difficult it can be to build a consistent championship contender around a quarterback on a big contract. Bo Nix is a bargain in that regard.
Nix has led the Broncos to back-to-back 10-plus-win seasons and playoff berths, all while still early in his rookie contract.
That will soon change, but the Broncos got an encouraging update in that regard.
NFL Announcement Looms Large for Bo Nix, Broncos
GettyBo Nix of the Denver Broncos looks on while leaving the field after defeating the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Nix is heading into Year 3 of a four-year, $18.6 million rookie-scale contract, and the Broncos still have his fifth-year option (currently valued at $27.2 million, per Over The Cap) and up to three years of franchise tags to retain him beyond that.
Nix will get more expensive, though, regardless of how the Broncos proceed.
They are not in bad financial shape anymore. Moreover, the latest news from the NFL bodes well for them remaining that way, even as Nix’s price tag potentially soars in the coming years.
“The NFL informed clubs today it is projecting a 2026 salary cap in the range of $301.2 million to $305.7 million per club, per source,” NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero reported in a post on X on January 30. “That would represent another significant jump from this year’s $279.2 million cap number, and nearly $100M than the $208.2M cap in 2022.”
FanSided’s Alicia de Artola listed “Super Bowl contenders with QBs on rookie contracts” among the beneficiaries of the new projection, citing Nix and the Broncos’ outlook as one of the top examples.
Nix’s big payday might not come until 2029, de Artola noted, but that is not all.
“The fact that Denver no longer has to pay Russell Wilson is a huge plus,” de Artola wrote on January 30.
Spotrac projected the Broncos have $28 million heading into the offseason following the league’s new cap outlook. That is before they make any further moves, which could swing their final number in either direction.
However, de Artola noted another potentially looming issue.
Bo Nix ‘Friction’ With Sean Payton Garnering Attention
GettyBo Nix #7 of the Denver Broncos and head coach Sean Payton speak during a break in action against the Los Angeles Chargers.
During a press conference on January 27, Broncos head coach Sean Payton said Nix had a “predisposed” condition that surgeons found during his procedure to repair a broken bone in his ankle that ended his season.
Nix pushed back on that, saying there were no “predisposed conditions” and that “he” should not speak on the QB’s medical history without full knowledge.
Some, like de Artolo, took that as Nix’s dissatisfaction with Payton’s remarks.
However, The Denver Post’s Luca Evans asserted that Nix was referring to a reporter who brought up the information, not chiding Payton, in a post on X on January 28, noting that he (Evans) took down a previous post on X that suggested otherwise.
Payton and Nix have clashed on the sidelines before, with both downplaying it as healthy friction between them.
Even if Payton’s remarks were an issue for Nix, the Broncos have all offseason to work it out.
Some of the Broncos’ roster deficiencies showed even before Nix missed the AFC Championship Game due to his ankle injury. So, the news from the NFL is another encouraging aspect to a disappointing end to the 2025 season.
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