Bo Nix won’t be lacing up his spikes anytime soon.
The Broncos quarterback is expected to be out for 12 weeks after undergoing season-ending ankle surgery, ESPN reported Sunday ahead of Denver’s AFC Championship clash against New England.
Nix — who fractured a bone in his right ankle in last Saturday’s thrilling 33-30 overtime win against the Bills in the divisional round — “is not supposed to put any weight on his ankle for at least four weeks,” according to the report.
Although the QB “is expected to be largely recovered in time to participate in the Broncos’ offseason program,” medical personnel “are trying to be very intentional” about what Nix will be able to do and what he’ll be limited to in that 12-week period, per ESPN.
Nix broke his silence on the injury in a heartfelt Instagram post on Wednesday.
“What started as one of the most exciting games I’ve ever been a part of ended with some of the most devastating football news I’ve ever received,” Nix said in the post’s caption.
“… We’re not finished, as a matter of fact, we’re just getting started. We’re just going to keep climbing higher. Go Broncos.”
Backup Jarrett Stidham is slated to start in Nix’s place.
“Stiddy’s been waiting for this moment for the entirety of his career,” Broncos offensive tackle Mike McGlinchey said of his teammate, according to ESPN. “He’s more prepared than anybody would be in this situation. And he can ball, he can flat-out play quarterback. We’ve seen it every day in practice. We’ve seen it in training camp.”
Sunday’s championship matchup at Empower Field at Mile High in Denver will mark Stidham’s first start of the season.
Kickoff begins at 3:00 p.m. ET.
The Broncos are 3.5-point underdogs on BetMGM entering the AFC Championship game.
