The Denver Broncos are legitimate Super Bowl contenders this season, at least in the eyes of Broncos Country. Much of the rest of the national media and fans around the league have yet to get on board with that, with many critics seeing the team as lucky and overrated.
But former Cincinnati Bengals Pro Bowl wide receiver Chad Johnson, speaking on a recent edition of Inside the NFL, suggests that the Broncos' recent win over the Green Bay Packers was huge and that the play of quarterback Bo Nix in that game, if he is able to continue playing at that level, will lead to the team hoisting the Lombardi Trophy.
"If he has more games like that, you might as well just ship the Lombardi to Denver."
— Inside the NFL (@insidetheNFL) December 18, 2025
Sounds like the @Broncos might be @OchoCinco's new AFC team after Bo Nix' latest performance 👀 pic.twitter.com/BIzMYfAZKb
"Listen, if Bo Nix has a game like that, like he had against the Green Bay Packers, you might as well just take the Lombardi Trophy and send it on to Denver right now", said Johnson when asked by Ryan Clark about his thoughts on the Broncos as an AFC contender.
Johnson went on to discuss how Sean Payton's play-calling against Green Bay differed from what we have seen this season and how his evolving trust in his second-year quarterback is growing with each week.
"The way they play defense, where there is no weakness at all three levels defensively for them, if you get a Bo Nix dishing and planning and throwing the way he was throwing.... Listen, for them, when Sean Payton calls plays, it's to protect his quarterback, to make sure he makes all the right decisions. The plays that are called are plays to make sure they're safe. But I'm not sure what happened this week. Maybe Sean Payton just said, forget it, I'm gonna let young bull just throw. I'm gonna just let him go, I'm gonna open up the offensive playbook and that's what we got" said Johnson.
Nix had an incredible game against Green Bay, arguably the best of his career. He completed 23 of 34 passes for 302 yards. He threw four touchdown passes and did not turn the ball over. But many of Nix's best moments in this game won't show up in a box score, such as this throw late in the game.
Clinging to a 27-26 lead and facing 4th-and-3 from Green Bay's 42-yard line with 9:03 left in the game, Nix dropped back and sailed a perfect pass to Courtland Sutton for a gain of 26 yards. The Broncos capped that drive off with a huge touchdown.
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This is the kind of throw Payton likely would not have authorized earlier in the season, but the evolution of Nix's game has warranted those kinds of calls. That level of play, if it continues, could lead Denver to its fourth Super Bowl victory.
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