Denver Broncos quarterback Bo Nix engineered what could be the defining victory of his young career, only to see it end with a broken ankle that will sideline him for the remainder of the postseason.
Nix‘s performance in the AFC Divisional Round on Saturday afternoon was nothing short of remarkable.
The second-year signal-caller threw for 279 yards and three touchdowns, while also leading the team in rushing with 29 yards, all in a 33-30 overtime triumph against the Buffalo Bills that punched Denver‘s ticket to the AFC Championship Game.
Yet even as the Broncos celebrated their first playoff win in a decade, the jubilation was tempered by the announcement that their franchise quarterback had suffered a fractured right ankle on one of the final plays before Wil Lutz‘s game-winning field goal.
Head coach Sean Payton confirmed the grim prognosis in a postgame press conference, saying Nix will undergo surgery and miss the rest of the 2026 postseason.
“Not good news,” Payton said, acknowledging the emotional weight of the moment.
For the Bills, it was a heartbreaking end to a season that promised much but ultimately fell short.
Quarterback Josh Allen had a chance to keep Buffalo alive in the fourth quarter before an overtime interception shifted momentum and cleared the path for Denver.
“It’s extremely difficult, I feel like I let my teammates down tonight,” Allen said afterward, visibly emotional. “It’s been a long season. Hate how it ended. It’s gonna stick with me for a long time.”
Mahomes and Allen both saw their seasons end at Nix‘s hands
The Kansas City Chiefs have held the AFC West in a stranglehold over the past decade, with the Missouri franchise winning the division in each of the previous nine seasons.
However, Denver and Bo Nix broke that run this year by winning the division, and it was a year that saw Mahomes miss out on the postseason entirely.
Meanwhile, Allen will be a Hall of Fame quarterback whether he wins the Super Bowl or not, and he’s helped the Buffalo Bills to relevancy, even if their fans are still desperate to taste the ultimate success after so many close chances.
Buffalo started the 2025 season as one of the favorites to take the AFC’s place in the Super Bowl, yet a defeat to Nix and the Broncos on Saturday night ended their season.
Not only did Nix enjoy a historic season from a personal on-field perspective, where he threw for 3,931 passing yards and 25 touchdowns, but he was able to unseat two of the AFC’s biggest names.
That isn’t bad for a second-year player, even if the 2025 season ultimately ended in heartbreak for him.
Nix’s role in reshaping this AFC playoff landscape, by knocking off Allen’s Bills and helping end the Chiefs’ divisional reign, is already etched into the narrative of the 2025 NFL season.
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