Bo Nix, Broncos drop opener after 'pretty pitiful' effort - ESPN

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Denver Broncos quarterback Bo Nix needed just three words to sum up the laundry list of woes in the team's 31-10 season-opening loss to the Kansas City Chiefs on Monday night at Arrowhead Stadium.

Nix said it was «pretty pitiful, actually.»

The Broncos started the evening riding an offseason full of optimism and high hopes, but ended it with one of the worst all-around performances since a 41-10 loss to the Baltimore Ravens in 2024 — Nix's rookie year.

«We just let ourselves down… we literally gave ourselves no chance to succeed and made it easier for them, point blank, period,» Nix said. "… We don't have a choice but to get better, just a nasty wake-up call."

In first-year offensive coordinator Davis Webb's regular-season debut as the team's playcaller, the Broncos found little rhythm, right from an ill-fated opening drive. In their first three plays from scrimmage, Nix was sacked to open the drive and threw his first interception of the season on the third play.

The Chiefs turned that into their first touchdown, and though the Broncos answered with their only touchdown drive of the night on their next possession to tie the score at 7-7, the die of frustration had already been cast. The Broncos' offense gained just 176 net yards and didn't have a play longer than 20 yards.

And defensively, a staggeringly large pile of missed tackles resulted in Chiefs running back Kenneth Walker III running for a career-high 173 yards in his first regular-season game in Kansas City. Walker averaged 7.5 yards per carry, and his total included a 60-yard touchdown run against a defense that allowed just one back gain more than 70 yards in a game last season.

The Chiefs finished with 220 yards rushing, and it was the most