Denver Broncos rookie quarterback Bo Nix revealed Monday that he had been playing through a significant injury.
Nix spoke to reporters as the Broncos cleaned out their lockers after their 31-7 Wild Card round loss to the Buffalo Bills.
“God was good to me this year,” Nix said. “He allowed me to stay upright and I was healthy, got to play each and every game. Obviously, we all play with some bruises and some cuts and scrapes, but the Vegas week, I had a little transverse process fracture from my back, but that week [I] got treatment and kind of made it through to that week, Monday Night Football.”
“I wasn’t going to miss the first Monday night game,” Nix added, noting that many of his teammates were also “banged up.”
Nix said that after the Broncos’ win against the Cleveland Browns on Dec. 2 and the team’s bye week, the injury “went away.”
“For that moment it was annoying, but we all play with annoying things,” said Nix, who then confirmed that he suffered three transverse process fractures.
The trauma can often be worsened if the person braces for impact; the spine can be twisted out of alignment, and muscles and ligaments can constrict, causing the transverse processes to break.
Fortunately, the injuries do not cause mechanical instability to the spine and heal at a similar pace as most bone injuries, between 4-8 weeks. Treatment includes rest, bracing, intermittent icing, and pain medication, along with physical therapy in the later stages.
Nix was still able to play at a high level, which puts some of his highlight throws late in the season in a different context. During the Cleveland game, Nix threw a 93-yard touchdown to wide receiver Marvin Mims. Nix threw the ball from roughly 3-4 yards in his endzone, and Mims caught the ball at the 45-yard line; he was, therefore, able to throw the ball about 47 yards through the air with an injured back.
Nix also threw a game-tying touchdown to Mims against the Cincinnati Bengals. Nix threw the ball off-platform while running to his right, from the Bengals’ 39-yard line to about 5 yards in the endzone—roughly 44 yards.
In total, Nix passed for 1,500 yards in the six games he played with injury; he also rushed for 135 yards. In that time, the Broncos went 4-2 and secured a playoff spot for the first time since they won Super Bowl 50 in 2016.
Nix finished the season with 3,775 yards passing, 29 touchdowns, and 12 interceptions; he rushed for 430 yards and four touchdowns and even had a touchdown reception.
Nix’s teammates said that playing through injury shows his grit.
For his part, Nix said he is looking to get healthy in preparation for next year. “Most importantly is [to] get [my] body back and get it fresh for the next season, take care of anything that’s hindering me from playing at my fastest level,” he said.
“When it comes to that, body work is great, workouts, throwing all the typical things you do throughout an offseason, the fun stuff.”
