ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — The crisp deep passes and out-of-pocket mobility suggested it.
On Saturday, Bo Nix confirmed it.
The Broncos' quarterback is back — and without limitations.
"I feel great," Nix said Saturday. "I feel normal. Nothing's holding me back. I'm out there playing like I normally do and feel really good in my spot. I'm going to continue to push it and progress, and also continue to physically get ready for this long season. Right now, I'm exactly where I want to be for our plan, and actually was a little bit ahead of where I was last year going into the season, going into the summer. I feel really good, feel like I'm in a good spot. I think it's showing on the field."
Added Head Coach Sean Payton: "I think [Vice President of Player Health & Performance] Beau Lowery and his staff have done a good job with the schedule. We're right where we wanted to be, where we hoped to be at this time. That's a credit to Bo, the training staff and all the people that have put in the work to get here."
Nix's first week of training camp has featured an array of long throws and a display of his patented mobility that will not be impacted by last season's injury.
"Absolutely not," Nix said. "I'm going to roll, and I'm going to be as athletic as I can be. It's a strength of ours and we have to use our strengths. For me, that's when I feel at my best and that's when I feel free. When I'm playing like that, when I'm moving around it's a good thing, but at the same time, I also know what it's like to not have that asset and have to stay in the pocket. I feel strong no matter what the play's going to be, no matter what happens defensively, no matter what my reaction is, I feel capable of doing it."
As a healthy Nix enters his third season, he's poised to work with a new play-caller in Offensive Coordinator Davis Webb. And while they are just beginning their partnership, Nix said the early reps have been "really good" for Denver's offense.
"I feel like we picked up right where we left off with Coach [Payton]," Nix said. "It's the voice in my ear, but both, Coach and Davis, are very calm, decisive, [giving] me the play. I feel like Davis is doing a really good job of communicating with me and not over-communicating, but just give me a few things here and there, reminders, little things about a play, like, 'Hey, don't forget this. Hey, remember you have this.' So, I think that's going to be great as we go with that communication in my ear. He's been waiting for this moment for a long time. He's been preparing for this, and he's really put us in a good spot."
Nix, too, has been waiting for his chance to return to the field, and he spoke Saturday about how he has a "drastically" different mindset than he did as a rookie.
"Year 1, I'm trying to just not mess up for the team," Nix said. "I feel like Year 3, I'm trying to make plays for the team."
In the early days of camp, Nix has accomplished the latter — and he said he likes how the first few days of camp have unfolded.
"It feels like we're heading in the right direction as a team," Nix said. "We're all sort of continuing to get our feet wet the first couple of days, learning some new things and also getting back to our favorites. I think it's been good to see everybody move around. It's been a competitive first couple of days, offense and defense, which is what you want to see. Both sides of the ball have been making a lot of plays. It's just a fun time right now."
