Who Should I Start? Sam Darnold or Bo Nix

Tuesday, July 21, 8:40 AM

Denver Broncos quarterback Bo Nix (ankle) is expected to be good to go for the start of training camp next week, according to Sean Keeler of The Denver Post. Head coach Sean Payton has been saying the same thing after Nix was limited during mandatory minicamp following offseason ankle surgery and a follow-up procedure earlier this year. The 26-year-old is expected to be a full-go for the start of camp, which means he shouldn't be limited at all for the start of the 2026 regular season on Monday night in Week 1 against the division-rival Kansas City Chiefs. The former 12th overall pick in 2024 out of the University of Oregon has finished as a top-10 fantasy QB in his first two seasons, even though he hasn't had much success deep down the field in Payton's offense. Nix threw for 3,931 yards, 25 touchdowns, and 11 interceptions on a league-high 612 pass attempts in 17 regular-season starts in 2025, completing 63.4% of his passes. The hope is that the addition of receiver Jaylen Waddle will help the Broncos stretch the field and become more explosive through the air, but ultimately, Nix's ability to run the ball after ankle surgery could determine whether he'll finish as a top-10 QB for a third straight season. Fantasy managers should consider the third-year signal-caller as a low-end QB1/high-end QB2 with a little more risk coming off a serious ankle injury in last year's postseason.