Five Oregon Ducks See Field

It’s a Sunday morning, preseason NFL football is on the TV, coffee is brewing; life is good. If you’re an Oregon Ducks Football fan watching the Denver Broncos’ first preseason game versus the Indianapolis Colts, the day just got even better.

Five Ducks so far have hit the field for Denver, including left guard Calvin Throckmorton, center Alex Forsyth, wide receiver Troy Franklin, tight end Hunter Kampmoyer, and of course, quarterback Bo Nix.

Bo Nix was named the third string quarterback after the release of the Broncos’ unofficial depth chart mandated before preseason play. However, even before the game started, Nix was taking reps with the first team in tandem with first string quarterback Jarrett Stidham.

It’s also notable that Franklin, Forsyth, and Throckmorton are also not first string players according to the unofficial roster.

Stidham punched in 11 plays with the Broncos before Nix was primed to enter the contest. Nix entered the game and immediately made an impact by converting a third down with an over twenty yard pass to wide receiver Courtland Sutton. This resulted in a field goal for the Broncos.

A missed connection between Nix and wide receiver Josh Reynolds prevented the Broncos from punching in their second touchdown, but Nix’s look was aggressive and accurate. A missed field goal followed, as Nix continued to stay in the game with the second string linemen entering, including Throckmorton and Forsyth.

Nix made his first preseason touchdown for the Broncos was a short range outside dart to wide receiver Marvin Mims Jr that felt oh so similar to an Oregon route.

“The NFL story tomorrow will be Nix,” said color commentator Rick Venturi.

Though Nix had some great looks, his game wasn’t without rookie mistakes. During their next offensive drive, tight end Lucas Krull fumbled a target from Nix after a catch. When the defense recovered with an interception on the very next drive, Nix didn’t quite capitalize on the opportunity after a miscommunication with wide receiver Devaughn Vele that forced a fourth down and a Wil Lutz field goal.

However, on the next offensive drive for the Broncos, Nix came in strong with a big gain connection between wide receiver Jaleel McLaughlin. Running back Audric Estime punched in the touchdown.

Second string quarterback Zach Wilson eventually took over for Nix by the middle of the Third quarter, but Nix’s statistics exiting the game showed serious promise for an NFL rookie.

Nix finished 125 yards passing on 15 of 21 attempts, 17 yards rushing, and one passing touchdown. Nix displayed ball control, passed to multiple receivers without a favorite, and looked comfortable in and outside of the pocket, especially with the second string offensive line.

“Bo Nix is an incredible athlete,” said Colts’ linebacker Laiatu Latu when asked on the sidelines about his play versus the former Duck.

Seems like the orange and blue will be seeing a whole lot more green and yellow this season.