Josh Allen won't be the only athletic and elusive QB when the Bills host Bo Nix, Broncos

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. (AP) — Josh Allen won't be the only athletic, elusive, mobile quarterback at Highmark Stadium this weekend when the Buffalo Bills host the Denver Broncos in an AFC wild-card game.

Rookie Bo Nix reminds plenty of observers of a young Josh Allen, including some members of the Bills coaching staff.

"He’s the real deal,” Bills defensive coordinator Bobby Babich said. “Not only can he hurt you with his arm, he can hurt you with his legs. I think he’s a smart player. I think he’s a poised player. I think you see command, and it’s not too big for him, you know. So I think you see all those things and, you know, he’s definitely a handful, that’s for sure.

“And you know, I think what you’ve seen as the season’s gone on, as we’ve seen a maturation process like any rookie would have and to where the game’s slowing down for him and he’s in more control."

Nix didn't quite put up numbers like the All-Pro Allen did this season, but he came close.

Nix had more passing yards than Allen (3,775 to 3,731), more touchdown throws (29-28) and a better completion percentage (66.3 to 63.6). But he was sacked twice as much as Allen (12) was and he threw a dozen interceptions to Allen's six.

Nix is fleet of foot, too, although his 430 yards and four touchdowns pale in comparison to Allen’s 531 yards and a dozen scores.

Nix started 61 games at Auburn and Oregon, most by a quarterback in NCAA history, before the Broncos made him the 12th overall pick and the sixth quarterback selected in last April's NFL draft.

Yet, he and No. 2 overall pick Jayden Daniels are the only ones who led their team to the playoffs. Daniels and the Washington Commanders (12-5) visit the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (10-7) Sunday for an NFC wild-card game.

It's Nix's surprising speed that's been a bonus to the Broncos (10-7), whose visit to Orchard Park, New York, to face the Bills (13-4) on Sunday marks their return to the playoffs after an eight-year drought.

“Maybe there’s a little bit more there than we didn’t see, because you know, he didn’t run the shuttles and everything (at the NFL scouting combine),” Broncos coach Sean Payton said. “But he can run and that’s kind of spaghetti sauce sometimes when the pocket isn’t clean.”

Nix set several franchise rookie records and won several NFL honors for his performances during the season. His 29 touchdown throws were two shy of Justin Herbert's NFL rookie record.

“Bo isn’t your average rookie," wide receiver Courtland Sutton said. “He comes in to work like a veteran. If no one knew that Bo was a rookie this year, and you just saw how he worked, and saw how he played on the field, no one would say, ‘That’s a rookie.’ I admire that about him. I admire that he doesn’t allow the outside circumstances or the outside noise to try to determine the type of player that he’s going to be. He has so much more."

Bills coach Sean McDermott, who has a terrific track record against young quarterbacks, concurs with Sutton that Nix isn't your typical greenhorn.

“It’s interesting because in this case he is a rookie, but I think he broke a record for the number of snaps played in the collegiate game,” McDermott said. “So he seems extremely poised for a young quarterback, and I’ve been very impressed with his mobility, his ability to extend plays. He makes a lot of plays with his arm as well, and I think they’ve got a real good one over there.”

That's exactly what Patrick Mahomes told Payton after Kansas City's 16-14 escape over Denver when a game-winning field goal try was blocked by the Chiefs as time expired.

“You got one,” Mahomes told Payton.

One special quarterback.

Although Nix has 17 starts under his belt, it's interesting to note that since 2019, the Bills are 24-3 against quarterbacks with 16 or fewer starts, and that includes last weekend's inconsequential loss to the Patriots' Drake Maye and Joe Milton.

Over those 27 games, the Bills have allowed just 18 touchdown passes, collected 77 sacks and 37 interceptions and forced four lost fumbles by QBs.

That mark includes wild-card wins over Miami's Skylar Thompson in 2022 and Pittsburgh's Mason Rudolph in 2023.

The Bills aim to add Nix to that list Sunday, while the Broncos trust Nix can lead them to an upset at Buffalo. After all, he surprised even his own head coach this season.

“To see a young guy have so much drive and passion for the game, it makes everyone around you better,” Sutton said. “For your quarterback to be the guy that has that energy, that has that juice, that comes to work every day with a smile on his face and a determination to get better, when your quarterback’s that guy, it makes everybody else in the entire building better.”

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AP Sports Writer John Wawrow contributed from Orchard Park, N.Y.

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Arnie Stapleton, The Associated Press