The sixth quarterback selected in the 2024 NFL Draft, Bo Nix had the most passing yards and the most touchdown passes among this season’s rookies. More importantly to the Denver Broncos, the first-year signal-caller showed them some things that don’t always appear on the stat sheet but do make a difference in the won-lost record as the team reached the playoffs for the first time in nine years.

“There are a lot of things to be encouraged about,” Broncos coach Sean Payton said at his end-of-season press conference. “His movement skills, some of the things maybe that we didn’t even see or forecast coming, his decision-making, he’s extremely accurate. I’ve said this before, he’s hard to sack, and that’s a good trait to have in our league. And then there are things that he’s going to look at and grow from and build on, whether it’s third-down snaps, whether it’s pressure snaps. But I’m real encouraged. And I’m glad that he’s with us and that it worked out the way it did.

“I know this, you know, he’s very conscientious. He comes in, he spends a lot of time here. He was here in my office for a half an hour yesterday. Yeah, I think it’s all in front of him. And I’ve said this before: I think we found that player that can lead us and be what we need relative to having the success we’re used to having. I think we found it.”

The former Pinson Valley High School and Auburn standout joined the Broncos as the 12th selection in the NFL Draft on April 25. The second choice, Jayden Daniels, also started every game for a playoff team as the Washington Commanders reached the NFC Championship Game.

RELATED: BO NIX DOWNPLAYS SHAKING OFF SPINAL FRACTURES TO START EVERY GAME FOR THE BRONCOS

In the 2024 regular season, Nix completed 376-of-567 passes for 3,775 yards with 29 touchdowns and 12 interceptions. He also finished sixth among rookies with 430 rushing yards in 2024, when four of his 92 carries went for touchdowns and 41 produced first downs.

Nix was sacked 24 times, or 4.06 percent of the time while attempting to pass. The No. 1 pick in the 2024 draft, Caleb Williams, was sacked at a 10.79 percent rate for 68 sacks, with the Chicago Bears. Daniels was sacked at an 8.92 percent rate for 47 sacks. The No. 3 pick, Drake Maye, was sacked at a 9.14 percent rate for 34 sacks with the New England Patriots.

Among rookies with at least 450 passes, only Peyton Manning with the Indianapolis Colts in 1998 and Derek Carr with the Oakland Raiders in 2014 have had lower sack rates than Nix.

“Bo was a pro the minute he walked in the building for rookie minicamp,” Denver general manager George Paton said during his end-of-season press conference. “You saw the poise throughout the season, poise beyond his years, poise for a rookie. Just the leadership — he was a captain as a rookie, and that’s tough, and, man, the team embraced him, and so you just look at that, the intangible piece, and then you look at the talent, what he did on the field. …

“Bo, man, he raised the level of everyone around him, and so I feel like he has that ‘it’ factor. Things he needs to work on, the coaches will get with him. He knows he has a lot to work on to get to where he wants to be, and that’s his mindset. I mean, he’s been here. It’s like, ‘Bo, you got to take a little break.’ He was here today; he was here yesterday.”

Nix heads into his first NFL offseason with an understanding of the tempo of the NFL game and the complexity of the league’s defenses, Payton said, which will allow him to grow as a pro as the quarterback prepares for his second campaign.

“Now you get that deep breath,” Payton said, “and you’re like, ‘All right, this is what it’s like.’ But I think the next two, three, four years, those are all important steps. I know he’s going to be here quite a bit.”

Payton expects Nix’s offseason work to continue the progress seen in the rookie’s first NFL season.

“He’ll have a schedule,” Payton said. “I think guys like him, he already has a schedule. He’s got the calendar from us, and he already kind of knows this is where I’m going to be, this is where I’m going to go, and it’ll be pretty organized. It’ll be pretty laid out, and it’ll be one in which — here’s the thing: Part of the growth and development is the willingness of the person. And someone like him, who’s really wanting to be a sponge and gather that information and all of that, is extremely positive.

“So, yeah, I think that’s just in his DNA. Like his aspirations for himself and for his team have to be higher than anyone else’s, and I think that’s the case.”

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Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on X at @AMarkG1.