In February this year, head coach Sean Payton announced that he would be giving up the play-calling duties ahead of the 2026 season. Subsequently, new offensive coordinator Davis Webb became the Denver Broncos‘ primary play-caller. But after Denver’s 31-10 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs in the first Monday Night Football game of the 2026 season, it’s safe to say that Webb’s first regular-season game as an OC couldn’t have gone much worse.
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Quarterback Bo Nix struggled tremendously, committed multiple turnovers, and took several sacks. As that happened, NFL legend LeSean McCoy called out Coach Payton for Nix’s struggles, considering Payton had given up the play-calling duties in the first place.
“Last year, Sean Payton called the plays,” said McCoy on Speakeasy. “This year he’s not. When he was calling the plays for Bo Nix, it was a very conservative, quarterback-friendly offense. A lot of bootlegs, a lot of fakes, a lot of runs, right? All these things getting him on the outside to run a little bit. All these different things for him. Now, I look, I’m like, ‘Yo, the coordinator ain’t calling the same plays you was calling.'”
“I think the problem is we felt Bo Nix has arrived…All I’m saying is I got to blame Sean Payton because when you was calling the plays, you knew what type of quarterback you had. You had to make it real quarterback-friendly for Bo Nix to be good. Now, it’s like just call him plays like he’s arrived.”
Against the Chiefs, Denver managed only 176 total yards and nine first downs. The Broncos converted just 2 of 12 third downs, while the Chiefs converted 9 of 17. Nix, on the other hand, finished his first game after coming back from an injury with 17-of-28 for 131 yards, one touchdown, and one interception, while also being sacked four times and losing one of his three fumbles.
His 69.2 passer rating was a dramatic contrast to the expectation surrounding him heading into the third season of his career. After that went down, Coach Payton addressed the disappointing season-opening loss, while acknowledging the offensive problems.
“Obviously, not a good evening,” said Payton. “Didn’t do a lot well at all in the game…That starts with me, that starts with our coaching staff. I thought they won, really, in every phase.”
McCoy’s comments, however, carry weight considering how well Bo Nix performed in the 2025 season with Sean Payton calling the plays. The quarterback led the Broncos to a 14-3 record, winning the AFC West, while also securing the AFC’s No. 1 seed. At the same time, Denver also reached the AFC Championship Round for the first time since their Super Bowl-winning season in 2015.
In the process, Nix recorded 3,931 passing yards, 25 touchdowns, and 11 interceptions. At the same time, Nix was heavily involved in Denver’s run game in 2025. He carried the ball 83 times for 356 yards and five touchdowns. The Broncos, meanwhile, finished with 2,018 rushing yards, compared with 3,807 passing yards.
The 2026 opener showed a major imbalance in Denver’s offense with Bo Nix operating things under center. Denver rushed for only 61 yards, while the Chiefs ran for 220, including 173 from Kenneth Walker III.
Nix, meanwhile, also threw an interception on his first offensive series. Evidently, Nix’s outing drew criticism as the Broncos Hall of Famer Shannon Sharpe called his performance the worst of his short NFL career.
“This was embarrassing,” said Sharpe. “This might have been Bo Nix’s worst game. He couldn’t hold on to the ball. He (was) getting pressure. He fumbled the ball on the sideline. You’d think he’d have better ball security in the pocket. Nah, let me hold it like a loaf of bread. I fumbled it one time. I got it back because the guys touched the ball out of bounds, so they got to bring it back to where he touched the ball. But I ain’t learned my lesson. Let me do it again. This was awful.”
That said, while the criticism is evident, McCoy now argues that Payton understood what kind of quarterback Nix was and previously tailored the offense accordingly. The new approach from the new offensive coordinator, however, appeared to treat Nix as though he had already fully “arrived.”