DENVER -- Denver Broncos coach Sean Payton has long said an impactful run game and a force-the-issue defense can be "a quarterback's best friends."
Broncos QB Bo Nix needed every bit of help from those besties Sunday, as Denver was able to open the 2025 season with a 20-12 win over the Tennessee Titans at Empower Field at Mile High despite three turnovers from its second-year QB.
"It's the best feeling when you've got a good defense, just over and over they kind of got us out of a jam throughout the game," Nix said. " ... [And] everybody in the stadium knew we were running the ball at the end, and we did a great job."
Sunday was the second three-turnover game of Nix's 18-game career -- he threw two interceptions and lost a fumble -- as he finished 25-of-40 for 176 yards with a touchdown to wide receiver Courtland Sutton. The lost fumble, the result of a sack by Titans defensive tackle Jeffery Simmons in the second quarter, was Nix's first since 2021, when he was a junior at Auburn.
High-turnover starts aren't new for Nix. He started last season with four interceptions in his first two games, then threw two in the next 10 games combined. That didn't make Nix feel better about his performance on Sunday, though.
"I think I'm tougher on myself now, because you do know better," Nix said. " ... Every year of my career I've thrown a pick, and as much as you don't want [to] I'm probably going to throw one every year I play, so just got to limit them. Hopefully I stay at two [interceptions] for a while."
Nix also threw two interceptions in last year's season-opening loss to the Seahawks. But that was his first career start. Sunday wasn't.
"You don't ever want to throw interceptions. As tough as it is, you've just got to move on and respond with positive plays after that," Nix said. "Both times I thought I had decent vision ... [but] probably shouldn't have thrown both of them. You live and you learn, sometimes you can be a little too aggressive, and I was too aggressive. Ultimately, I've got to be smarter.
"I have to take care of the football, especially with our defense. Can't put them in bad spots."
Nix's turnovers put the Broncos' defense in a bad spot. His first interception to Titans safety Xavier Woods occurred at the Tennessee 46-yard line, while his fumble gave Tennessee the ball at the Broncos' 38. His second interception, thrown to Tennessee corner Roger McCreary, placed the Titans at the Denver 26. But the Broncos' defense bailed out its quarterback, limiting the Titans to two field goals off Nix's gaffes.
For his part, Payton was quick to defend his quarterback's play, especially down the stretch.
"I thought [Nix] hung in there, he battled he made some critical plays for us in in the second half," Payton said. "Obviously he'll be disappointed with the turnovers, but it was a gutsy performance. Pretty usual Week 1, a lot of looks maybe you haven't seen. ... Overall his job is to lead us to scores and I thought he played really well in the second half and we won the game."
When asked further about Nix's overall progress after Week 1, Payton curtly added: "We're not going to have a growth meter each week ... he's in his second year and I love the player and he can be a huge reason we win games, but we're not going to have the meter."
Before the season opened, Nix said he believed that one of the biggest challenges he'd face would be dealing with adjustments opposing defenses devised for him to take away the throws he prefers. The Titans were intent on hemming Nix in the pocket on Sunday, creating pressure to force off-balance throws and pushing a lot of the quarterback's reads outside the numbers toward the sideline.
Nix did get some help from the Broncos' rushing attack late. After rushing the ball only 18 times -- 13 from running backs -- for 57 yards in the first three quarters, Denver got 91 yards in the fourth quarter from running backs RJ Harvey and J.K. Dobbins. Harvey had a 50-yard run, while Dobbins' 19-yard touchdown run three plays later provided the final margin of victory.
Despite the win, Nix knows adjustments have to be made, and his teammates believe in his ability to make them. Safety Talanoa Hufanga, who sported a Nix T-shirt after the game, felt like he spoke for the locker room when discussing the Broncos quarterback.
"It's a team sport," Hufanga said. "... Regardless of what kind of day he has, I know I've got his back and he's got mine."