It was made official Wednesday that rookie Bo Nix will be the starting quarterback for the Denver Broncos once the regular season begins on Sunday, Sept. 8 against the Seattle Seahawks. One of the best quarterbacks in Broncos history in John Elway gave his thoughts on the news saying that while there is no doubt he’ll have his ups and down, he has got “all the talent” according to Mile High Sports.

“He’s going to have his ups and downs as a young guy—I had plenty of those—but I think he’s got all the talent, will, and mind strength to be able to do it,” Elway said.

Funny enough, now that Nix has been announced as the starting quarterback, he only joins Elway as being the two rookies that will get the nod of QB1 to start the season. Broncos head coach Sean Payton would explain his reasoning to reporters of why the University of Oregon product got the honors, even saying “he’s been outstanding” according to Sports Illustrated.

“Bo Nix is going to be our starting quarterback,” Payton said to reporters. “I felt like—and I said this to you guys two weeks ago—that [quarterback] room has been outstanding. … He's been outstanding. Obviously, there's a ton of room for growth; there's a lot of things that he needs to work on.”

Sean Payton further explains decision for Bo Nix as Broncos QB1

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Nix has been no doubt impressing in the preseason appearances he had where he was in command of the offense while putting up many scoring drives in the process. Payton would talk more into the decision of making the 24-year old the starting quarterback, explaining how “consistent” he has been, though emphasizing that it does not take anything away from the other signal-callers on the roster like Jarrett Stidham or Zach Wilson.

“The larger body of work,” Payton said. “I would say a lot of the off-schedule movement throws, and I think he's been consistent. It's not really a reflection on Jarrett or even Zach, it's some of the things [Nix] has been able to do pretty quickly—his arm strength down the field, all the things that when we evaluated him, you kind of trust your instincts.”

Time will tell if Nix can accomplish even a hair of what Elway has done with Denver, but having his badge of approval is a nice touch. At any rate, the team is looking to improve after an 8-9 record last season where they were third in the AFC West.

The Broncos have one more preseason game against the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday before the Week 1 opener on Sunday, Sept. 8 against the Seahawks.