Stephen A. wasn’t trying to knock Stidham in message to Patriots (1:39)Stephen A. Smith reacts to the Patriots’ win over Jarrett Stidham and the Broncos for the AFC title. (1:39)
Associated PressMultiple AuthorsJan 27, 2026, 03:33 PM ET
ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — Sean Payton said at his season-ending news conference Tuesday that Denver Broncos quarterback Bo Nix had a preexisting ankle condition that made a fracture inevitable.
Nix broke a bone in his right ankle on Denver’s game-winning drive in the Broncos’ 33-30 overtime victory over the Buffalo Bills in the divisional round of the playoffs.
Nix flew to Birmingham, Alabama, last week for an operation performed by Dr. Norman E. Waldrop III, a renowned foot and ankle specialist at the Andrews Sports Medicine and Orthopedic Center.
Nix watched from a suite Sunday as backup Jarrett Stidham took his place in Denver’s 10-7 loss to the New England Patriots in the AFC Championship Game.
On Tuesday, the Broncos’ brass provided the fullest accounting yet of Nix’s injury, with Payton saying a preexisting issue made the fracture “a matter of when.”
“So listen, he’ll rehab his tail off and get ready and get back to being healthy,” Payton said. “I think for someone who runs with the ball, I think he’s done a pretty good job of protecting himself, not all the time, but for the most part, he’s done a pretty good job of sliding and understanding playing for another day.”
General manager George Paton said Nix is tracking to return in May when the Broncos begin organized team activities.
Just before going to the lectern for his wrap-up news conference, Payton said he saw Nix cruising around team headquarters on his medical scooter, which he’ll use until he graduates to crutches and then a walking boot.
“He was just up above us here,” Payton said from the atrium of the Broncos’ suburban headquarters. “I said, ‘What are you doing? Getting your scooter laps in?’
“You have to know him. He’s fidgety to begin with,” Payton said. “He might have just been getting his scooter laps. He was up there, like, in an area he’d never be in departmentwise. He’s handling it like a pro. Man, I’m sure there’s disappointment for him to have to watch” on Sunday.
Nix led the Broncos (15-4) to a franchise record-tying 14 wins in the regular season and their first playoff triumph since Super Bowl 50 a decade ago. He has won 25 games in two seasons and has an NFL-best 11 game-winning drives in the fourth quarter or overtime during that span.
“It’s difficult to get as far as he brought us, and then also to see one of his contemporaries, someone in his draft class who he would have loved to have competed against, advance,” Payton said of Patriots QB Drake Maye, who was Nix’s predraft training partner.
Stephen A. wasn’t trying to knock Stidham in message to Patriots (1:39)Stephen A. Smith reacts to the Patriots’ win over Jarrett Stidham and the Broncos for the AFC title. (1:39)
Stephen A. Smith reacts to the Patriots’ win over Jarrett Stidham and the Broncos for the AFC title. (1:39)