ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — Game week is here.
After an offseason of competition and a 3-0 preseason, the Broncos are finally set to test themselves in a game that counts.
And as quarterback Bo Nix prepares to become the first Broncos rookie quarterback since John Elway to start the season opener, Head Coach Sean Payton said Monday the team will aim to elevate the best parts of Nix's game.
"Any time there's a different player under center, [you ask] what do they do well?" Payton said. "It's difficult to play that position. I've said this before: It's certainly tough if you're having trouble defensively or if you're having trouble running the football. More is asked of that position. [When] you get a young player like Bo Nix, there are certain skill sets he has [and] strengths and weaknesses.
"Hopefully we build on the strengths and then really minimize the things maybe that a young player might face to open up the start of the season."
Nix's first NFL start will come less than 10 miles from where he and his eighth-ranked Oregon Ducks faced another top 10 team in the Washington Huskies in 2023.
Asked how the team will prepare Nix for the raucous environment at Lumen Field, Payton likened the setting to what Nix experienced at Husky Stadium. While Oregon fell by three points to the eventual College Football Playoff runner-up, Nix completed 33-of-44 passes for 337 yards and two touchdowns.
"It's going to be loud," Payton said. "I would imagine there will be some similarities to when Oregon goes to Washington and they're playing in front of however many thousand people. That's another loud stadium … down the road. So we'll deal with the crowd noise this week. This won't be the first game we play where it's loud."
Denver's Week 1 preparation will also include getting set to face a team with a new head coach in Mike Macdonald and new coordinators in all three phases.
Macdonald joined the Seahawks after spending the last two seasons as the Ravens' defensive coordinator, and Baltimore ranked first in scoring defense and sixth in total defense in 2023. New Seattle offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb, meanwhile, spent a pair of seasons at the University of Washington in the same role.
"Week 1 often times brings these types of games where there are coaching changes," Payton said. "Certainly Mike will be heavily involved in what they do defensively [and] offensively. They have a coordinator coming from the University of Washington and [a] new special teams coach. There's a lot of moving parts.
"We just finished talking about it as a team. If you're looking specifically at the tape to study individuals, then all of last year's film is relevant [and] certainly the preseason this year. [If it's] more specifically scheme, than you get into deciding what you want to put into your cut-ups, whether it be Ravens film or whether it be preseason film. It's not that uncommon in Week 1."
ADDING TO THE INTERIOR
The Broncos signed former Packers inside linebacker Kristian Welch on Thursday, and Payton said the signing came as the Broncos aimed to improve their inside linebacking corps.
"We still felt like inside linebacker was an area of need for us," Payton said. "We went into kind of the final 53 cut-down looking at that position. He was someone that stood out on film. Obviously, we had practice tape together with him, but more importantly, just the body of work for that player."
Welch has played at least 60 percent of the special teams snaps across games in which he has appeared in his career, and he made a defensive impact in the preseason. Welch led the Packers with 16 tackles and tied for the NFL lead with two picks in the 2024 preseason slate.
Welch has appeared in 57 games in his four-year career.
QUICK HITS
… Payton said the Broncos would decide upon team captains "in the next couple of days" and make an announcement ahead of Week 1.
… Asked if the Broncos have decided who will back up Nix, Payton said he would "settle it and keep you guys posted."
