The winner of the award will be revealed during NFL Honors on Thursday, Feb. 5.

"I think for me, it's just going to make playing in one of these games that much more special," Nix said. "Unfortunately, I can't go back and play in that one, but man, I can do something to change and see how many I can play in in the future."

"We think that we will create something that is going to be special for the city of Denver and the state of Colorado," Penner said Wednesday.

"He won 15 games for us," Penner said of Nix. "He showed his mettle in the fourth quarter a lot of times, bringing us back. He would say the same thing. It's only his second year in the league, and he has room to grow. Fortunately, Bo has a terrific approach of studying and working. He loves the game. I look forward to watching his continued improvement over the coming years."

Denver Broncos Head Coach Sean Payton on Tuesday announced the team has parted ways with Offensive Coordinator Joe Lombardi, Wide Receivers Coach Keary Colbert and Cornerbacks Coach Addison Lynch.

"I can only imagine what this is going to do to fuel him," inside linebacker Alex Singleton said Monday.

"We're in this industry, [and] you're going to get punched and have some tough losses," Head Coach Sean Payton said Tuesday. "It happened in Kansas City … and we responded. … That can't discourage you from coming back, or you're never going to taste [success]."

"It's always a climb," defensive tackle Malcolm Roach said. "Every season's new. … It's going to be new challenges, but we've got to find a way."

All six players finished the year on Denver's practice squad.

"It was a hard-fought game," Head Coach Sean Payton said, "and we didn't do enough to win it."

The Broncos will look to earn an AFC Championship Game win against the Patriots to advance to Super Bowl LX.