The Denver Broncos got their first win of the season after beating the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 26-7. The win was impressive, as the Buccaneers were a surging team, while the Broncos were seriously struggling. Needless to say, the Broncos were big underdogs.

The win came at the hands of rookie quarterback Bo Nix, who had a big bounceback performance after struggling the first two weeks of the season. Against the Buccaneers, Nix was 25-for-36 for 216 yards, with one rushing touchdown and no interceptions.

Broncos head coach Sean Payton has stood by the rookie quarterback since the day he was drafted. Following the impressive win, Payton further emphasized his belief in Nix.

“I say this, and I mean this. It’s so important, and I include myself and the offensive coaching staff – it’s our job to paint a perfect picture for this player,” Payton said after Nix's first career regular-season win. “And if we do that, and we used to say that about whoever is under [center] – our job as coaches, as receivers… we have to paint the picture, and when we do that, this guy is going to be something.”

When asked about Nix's confidence and if it has ever wavered in the losses, Payton immediately shut the idea down before the question could be finished.

“Stop,” said Payton. “Kid’s been confident. Kid’s been through Auburn, he’s transferred. He’s won and won and won and won and honestly, I haven’t seen him flinch. We all get a little bit more confident with a win, but I say that respectfully. He hasn’t flinched. We had a good plan. The players did a good job and certainly he had more fun than he did in prior weeks.”

Broncos' Bo Nix excited following first career NFL win

Denver Broncos quarterback Bo Nix (10) reacts after he gets first down against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers during the second half at Raymond James Stadium
© Kim Klement Neitzel-Imagn Images
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The first career win for any player is very exciting. That moment finally came on Sunday for Nix.

“It was great,” said Nix. “Before the game we wanted to hear the music and have a party. We played motivated today. We went out there and executed at a high level and that’s what it’s supposed to feel like.”

The Broncos were essentially written off ahead of their matchup against the Buccaneers. The Buccaneers were firing on all cylinders through the first two weeks of the season. For the Broncos, however, they were struggling to find any sort of offensive footing. So for the Broncos to finally look good offensively, it felt like a good win.

“You get back in the locker room and everybody’s really excited,” said Nix. “You put so much into the week. You put so much effort, time, energy and those are what those moments are about. That’s what you want to get to. You want to get to those postgame celebrations.”

With this win, the Broncos now sit at 1-2 on the season. While winning certainly uplifted some spirits, the Broncos will enjoy it for a short while, but will ultimately set their sights on winning their next matchup against the New York Jets.

“You only get this moment one time and it’s not easy winning games in this league,” Nix said on winning his first game. “But our guys deserve this, our guys have earned this. We have a great team that really battles in there.”