ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — Entering Week 7, Bo Nix called upon himself to play at a higher level.
In the ensuing win over the Cardinals, the Broncos' offense posted its highest scoring output of the season. Nix recorded both his second multi-touchdown game and his highest yardage output of the year.
And yet, as the Broncos prepare to host the Chiefs in a divisional showdown, Nix's perspective has not changed.
"I'll never play a game where I'll tell you I played good or didn't have a need to change," Nix said Wednesday. "For me, it all goes back to, 'What can I watch? What can I take from? How can I be different? How can I change?' I always feel like there's something I can improve upon. We played better, but realistically you can look at things and every game you can pull things that didn't go your way. Sometimes you can overlook the important things that you need to fix. These wins that you're winning may turn into losses because you didn't fix them over time. For me, it's all about getting better. That's just — in my opinion — the right way to be a professional. You never want to be the same. You never want to stay the same because to maximize my opportunity and my talents, I don't have a choice but to get better. I can't stay the same."
Nix and the Broncos' offense will face a stiff challenge against a Kansas City defense that ranks second in scoring defense and gave up just 10 points in the teams' Week 1 meeting.
"I've watched it several times," Nix said of the Broncos' Week 1 loss. "I watched it after immediately and then watched it again this week to prepare. It definitely doesn't leave me excited with how that game ended. There are a lot of things we can focus on and correct. What I've learned over the past is you can't play the same game twice. That's going to be a completely different game than what Sunday's game is going to be, and you have to play it as such. You have to show up with a different mentality and just compete and just do what you can to have a different outcome than last time."
An improved rushing performance could be among the avenues that allow the Broncos to find a different result. Denver posted its highest rushing output of the season in its Week 7 win vs. Arizona, posting 159 yards and — in no small part due to Nix's 62-yard touchdown run — averaging 6.1 yards per carry.
"There was obviously a step last week," Head Coach Sean Payton said of the run game. "We've got to continue to build on it."
Nix and Co. also connected on four plays of at least 20 yards through the air, including downfield strikes to Courtland Sutton, Jaylen Waddle and Marvin Mims Jr.
"There were more flashes of what we expect, I would say, in this past game," Sutton said Wednesday. "It wasn't perfect, and we did leave some meat on the bone out there.
"There were still some opportunities that we could've hit and had the game go in a different way. … When you do score 30 and then you do go watch the film and you see those opportunities out there, you're like, 'Man, when this thing fully clicks, it's going to be a lot of fun going out there playing offense.'"
In Nix's eyes, that continued improvement will stem from his ability to raise his own game.
"I would say there's still a lot out there," Nix said. "… I do think there's a lot of room for growth, a lot of room for improvement. That's why it's exciting. We're sitting here at 5-2, we've played a really tough schedule and we're talking about all the ways we can improve. We're close, but I don't feel like we're really dominating or scratching the surface of what we can be. We are doing what we're supposed to do to win games, which is first and foremost the most important thing. I do think we're leaving some things out there with penalties, third downs and some other things.
"It starts with me. We're going to correct it. We're going to get the job done. At the end of the day, we're not satisfied. I think that's the most important thing, and you can tell by the way we practice — and how we're working and how we're preparing — [that] we're not satisfied. I don't feel like anybody on the team is, from the coaches on down. That's where you want to be at this point in the season."
