With an eagerness to move on from the nightmare that emanated in Seattle, the Denver Broncos got neither redemption nor relief on Opening Day. It was the second Opening Day in Seattle in the past three seasons, with both showings ending one score shy of victory. This time, the 26-20 Seattle victory was at the hands of rookie quarterback Bo Nix, making his debut in his return to the Pacific Northwest as a pro.

In his first start, Nix gave the haters fuel for hate while giving his fans something to cheer about. In the loss, the veterans did not have breakout games, the running backs did not have a running game, and the receivers dropped passes. In the end, the defense couldn’t make one stop to put the offense in a position to make a comeback drive for the win.

From the start, the game was there for the taking from the Seahawks. The first play of the game resulted in a sack by the Broncos. The second play was an interception by Alex Singleton. The turnover resulted in a field goal after three plays when the offense failed to get a first down. Twice, the Seahawks failed to get out of their end zone, resulting in two safeties in the first half. The first safety came after Bo Nix was intercepted near the Seahawks’ end zone. The Broncos still went into halftime with a 13-9 lead.

“It was tough to get some explosive plays, and I think when you have a hard time getting explosives and you have to sustain drives, it can get you in third-and-long and just tough situations,” said Nix. “Overall, I think as poorly as we did, I think we gave ourselves a chance to win there at the end. Our special teams and defense played incredible. They really kept us in the game and gave us hope. They battled.”

After the break, the momentum shifted in favor of the Seahawks, who scored the following 17 points. It wasn’t until there was 2:17 left in the fourth quarter that the Broncos’ offense came to life. Nix scored on a 4-yard run that capped a 7-play, 54-yard drive, resulting in Nix’s first NFL touchdown.

“I think, overall, you like the compete [level] of our team,” Nix said after the game. “You like the look of [how] we never quit. We battled. It could’ve gotten out of hand, but it didn’t, and we were a possession away from having a chance, essentially. Obviously not the original results you want, but I feel like we’re going to have a confident group, and we’re going to bounce back from it and continue to compete.”

Trailing by six points, the Broncos needed just one stop to return the ball to the offense. Geno Smith completed two 9-yard passes, and Broncos linebacker Baron Browning was called for a defensive offsides penalty. Still, with 1:48 left on the clock, the Broncos needed only to stop the Seahawks on a third down and 6 at the 34-yard line. Smith then completed a 9-yard pass to Tyler Lockett, essentially ending the game.

Bo Nix got mixed reviews for his opening performance. He was 26-of-42 completions for 138 yards, with one touchdown and two interceptions. His quarterback rating was 47.5, and he was sacked two times. Nix also had the most rushing yards for the Broncos, with 35 yards. Geno Smith was 18-for-25 in passing for the Seahawks, with one touchdown and one interception. His quarterback rating was 87.2, and he was sacked twice.

“I don’t know how many balls we dropped, and so Ive said that before, for any quarterback playing, we’ve got to be more effective running the football,” Head Coach Sean Payton said. “If (you) take away his scrambling yards, I think we’re like somewhere (around) 60 yards rushing to their 140, so not nearly good enough. But he gave us a chance. Our protection was average at best and I believe this. At one point in the game I came to the bench and talked to the receivers and said look, let’s go, you know? I don’t know how many drops we had, but, man, let’s help this guy.”

Next up for the Broncos is the home opener at Empower Field at Mile High Stadium against the Pittsburgh Steelers. Although the big draw for this game was Russell Wilson’s return to Denver, it was not known after Sunday’s game if he would actually play in his return. Wilson missed the Steelers Sunday opener against the Atlanta Falcons due to a leg injury and was replaced by Justin Fields. They beat the Falcons 18-10. Game time on Sunday is 2:25 pm pm, and the weather is expected to be 87 degrees and sunny.

‍