Broncos’ $18 Million ‘Steady Franchise Quarterback’ Named NFL’s Best Value

There is no way to get ahead quicker and bring your franchise back to life in more rapid fashion than drafting the right quarterback. Coincidentally, drafting the wrong quarterback is also the quickest way to send your franchise into a death spiral.

The Denver Broncos seem like they got one of the right ones in Bo Nix, and the No. 12 overall pick in the 2024 draft could be the key to the franchise’s salvation moving forward in more ways than one.

As a rookie, Nix led the Broncos back to the playoffs for the first time in a decade and was a finalist for NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year. With a 4-year, $18.6 million rookie contract, Nix’s value over the next 2 seasons becomes the key to the Broncos establishing themselves as one of the AFC’s elite teams beyond that.

Simply put, if your most important player is one of your lowest paid, that means you can surround him with elite talent.

Bleacher Report’s Brad Gagnon put Nix on his list of the NFL’s “Most Underpaid Players” on March 28.

“This one’s simple,” Gagnon wrote. “Nix is already a steady franchise quarterback and is on track to become a star at the sport’s most critical position. Yet 38 quarterbacks have higher salaries than the 2024 No. 12 overall pick at $4.7 million per season. ”

Nix Was Revelation for Broncos in 2024

Little was expected of Nix or the Broncos in 2024, with the team’s projected win total set at just 5.5 wins before the season according to BetMGM. Of the record-tying 6 quarterbacks taken in the first round of the 2024 draft, Nix was the last of the bunch.

After Nix beat out Jarrett Stidham and Zach Wilson for the starting quarterback job in training camp, the Broncos clawed their way back from an 0-2 start to win 5 of their next 6 games. Along with making their first playoff appearance since 2015, the Broncos also ended up with their first winning record since 2016 by finishing the season 10-7.

Nix’s experience — and resilience — ended up being one of the keys to the season.

In college, Nix set an FBS record with 61 career starts and he turned 25 years old in February. By comparison, New England Patriots quarterback Drake Maye, the No. 3 overall pick in 2024, didn’t turn 22 years old until 1 week before the regular season.

Mahomes is Template for Maximizing Rookie QB Contract

Playing on a 4-year, $16.72 million contract after he was selected No. 10 overall in the 2017 NFL draft, Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes spent his rookie year as a backup to Alex Smith then became the starter in 2018.

Mahomes won NFL Most Valuable Player and NFL Offensive Player of the Year in 2018 while leading the Chiefs to the AFC Championship Game. In 2019, Mahomes led the Chiefs to their first Super Bowl win in 50 years and was named Super Bowl MVP — the first of 3 Super Bowl wins and 4 more Super Bowl appearances over the next 5 seasons.

Over those 2 seasons, the Chiefs paid Mahomes a paltry $3.1 million before signing him to a 10-year, $450 million contract extension in July 2020. That’s the kind of value NFL teams dream of when they draft quarterbacks.

While Nix’s continued ascent isn’t guaranteed, if he were to continue on his current path we can reasonably project his contract extension in 2027 could pay him in the neighborhood of $70 million per season.