Bo Nix and Troy Franklin Are Quietly Fueling the Broncos Into Super Bowl Contenders
Former Oregon Ducks quarterback Bo Nix and wide receiver Troy Franklin had a day to remember in the Denver Broncos 44-24 win over the Dallas Cowboys. The Broncos offense was too much for the Cowboys and the former Ducks were a big reason why.
Bo Nix, Troy Franklin Lead Broncos to Win
Bo Nix was 16/29 passing for 247 yards, four touchdowns, and one interception in the win over the Cowboys to improve Denver’s record to 6-2 on the season. For the season, he has thrown for 1,803 yards, 15 touchdowns, and five interceptions.
Nix’s favorite target in the game was his college teammate, Troy Franklin.
Franklin had a team high six receptions for 89 yards and two touchdowns. His longest touchdown was in the first quarter on a 25-yard touchdown toss from Nix. For the season, Franklin has 33 receptions for 358 yards and four touchdowns.
It was an impressive showing from the Broncos offense, who had 426 total yards en route to their 44 points scored.
From Eugene to Denver
Bo Nix had a five-year collegiate career that stretched from 2019 through 2023. Nix’s two most productive seasons were in 2022 and 2023, his only two seasons with the Ducks. In those years, Nix threw for 8,101 yards and 74 touchdowns. In 2023, Nix finished third in Heisman trophy voting and helped lead the Ducks to a 12-win season that resulted in a Fiesta Bowl victory.
The following April, Nix was selected No. 12 overall in the 2024 NFL Draft by the Denver Broncos. Many skeptics believed that this was a reach to take Nix that high, but he is proving those doubters wrong.
Troy Franklin played with the Oregon Ducks from 2021 through 2023. He totaled 2,483 receiving yards and 25 receiving touchdowns.
Franklin’s best season was in 2023, with Nix as his quarterback. Franklin had 1,383 receiving yards and 14 receiving touchdowns. He was a second-team all-American and was selected in the fourth round of the 2024 NFL Draft by the Broncos.
Nix, Broncos in First Place in AFC West With Eye On Super Bowl
After eight weeks of the 2025 NFL season, the Denver Broncos are in first place in the AFC West division with their 6-2 mark. Denver got off to a slow 1-2 start, but has rattled off five straight wins since. This is a division that has been dominated by the Kansas City Chiefs in recent years, with Kansas City winning the division crown nine straight times. The Chiefs are currently 4-3.
The Broncos for the time being have the slight edge in the standings over both the Chargers and Chiefs. There is still a lot of season left and for Denver to win the west, they will have to show they can beat the Chiefs. They have two games against them left on their schedule.
it cannot be denied that Denver has a great shot to make noise in the NFL Playoffs this season. Could this be the season the Broncos get back to the Super Bowl? The stars are aligning for the young team and leading the division is no small feat.
Denver coach Sean Payton feels like this Broncos team can hoist the Lombardi Trophy this season. Before the 2025 NFL season began, Payton predicted that Nix will be a top four or five quarterback in the league the next two years.
“The short-term goal is winning the division,” Payton told Yahoo. “But this is a team capable of winning the Super Bowl. I’ve coached six teams that I thought could win the Super Bowl. Some went to championship games, some to the playoffs. This is my seventh team that I think has that.”
Browns Send Message on ‘Frustrated’ Myles Garrett After Outburst
Myles Garrett #95 of the Cleveland Browns looks on during the second quarter in the game against the New England Patriots at Gillette Stadium on October 26, 2025 in Foxborough, Massachusetts.
As the Browns followed up a promising effort against the Dolphins in Week 7 with an overall disaster in Week 8 against the Patriots, it was clear that Cleveland’s old pal–frustration–had returned with a vengeance. For star edge rusher Myles Garrett, in the midst of a career day with five sacks of budding MVP candidate Drake Maye, the frustration was especially poignant.
Garrett wants to win, badly. At 30 years old and in his ninth season, he has just three games of playoff experience behind him, playing for an organization that has struggled at just about every level. It was only nine months ago that Garrett demanded a trade, seeking a place where he could compete for a Super Bowl. The Browns gave him a whopping new $160 million contract, persuading him to stay.
But the now 2-6 reality of this team has settled in again, and in the final two minutes of Sunday’s loss, Garrett was seen throwing his helmet in frustration and later kneeling by himself on the sideline, away from the rest of the team.
Browns Are ‘All Frustrated’
The outburst was not lost on Browns fans, observers and even coaches. Head coach Kevin Stefasnki was asked about Garrett’s helmet-toss on Monday. His message: It’s time for leaders to show “resolve.”
“We’re all frustrated,” Stefanski said. “Obviously, in those moments, we want to make sure it doesn’t get the best of us. But with that frustration comes a resolve, and I know Myles and I know him as a leader, I know the leaders in this football team will show that mental, will show that resolve.”
Myles Garrett Wanted to be on the Field
Garrett had conceded he was frustrated in that moment. It’s obvious that the losing is wearing on him, though in the end, the decision to return to the Browns and take the major contract was his. Because of their cap and quarterback situation, the Browns are stuck in their mediocrity, and Garrett is bearing that burden.
Garrett indicated that he did not like being on the bench down the stretch, even though the game was out of reach.
“Frustrated,” he said. “I want to win. No matter how much time is on the clock, they got their starters in, there’s a chance we can win, I want to be a part of that. I don’t care how dire the situation looks. I want to try to make something happen, so I hate coming out in a situation, I hate that kind of inevitability. And not being able to do anything about it.”
Browns, Myles Garrett Heading Into Bye Week–And NFL Trade Deadline
Stefanski said the hope is that the Browns can go into the coming week–their bye week–and regroup, with the promise of a better run in the second half of the season. The NFL’s trade deadline is next Tuesday, and it’s not clear whether Cleveland will move any of its players. Certainly, they’re not dealing Garrett.
Yes, there is frustration at 2-6. But he wants players to direct that frustration to improvement.
“I mean, you are what your record says you are, so we got to own it – that’s where we are,” he said. “But we’re excited about the challenge in front of us. Again, guys will take a breath this week, but then you got nine games coming up, five of them at our place. …
“I think it’s really so specific to all of us. We know we have a job to do – the fun in this business is winning, so, there’s the frustration that comes with losing a game, is very real. But how you channel that and how you, like you said, use it as fuel moving forward, I think is really important.”
