The Denver Broncos have formed an identity as the NFL's comeback team, something that started last season and has carried over into this season following the team's recent win over the Los Angeles Rams. But if you look back on the team's history, what Bo Nix and the current team are doing is only an extension of a rich history.
John Elway, the greatest player in franchise history, was known for a lot of great things in his storied career, but being the comeback king became his calling card. Elway was one of the original comeback artists at the quarterback position and according to Pro Football Reference, his 31 fourth-quarter comeback wins still rank in the top 10 in league history.
A game was truly never out of reach with Elway running the show,
and now, Nix is becoming known for the same thing.
Most comeback wins by a QB in first 3 seasons
— NFL on CBS 🏈 (@NFLonCBS) September 28, 2026
since 1970
Bo Nix 20
Russell Wilson 19
Andrew Luck 18
Dak Prescott 18 pic.twitter.com/8uIN5FOuZh
But before Nix, the Broncos had Tim Tebow. A first-round pick in 2010, Tebow's career is not remembered for many high marks. But regardless of whether you think he was a good quarterback or not, the magic of the 2011 season, which became known forever as "Tebowmania," was undeniable.
That season, Tebow orchestrated some of the wildest, almost unexplainable comebacks in NFL history while leading the Broncos to a division title and one of the most memorable wins in team history over the Pittsburgh Steelers in the playoffs.
Those comebacks were memorable because of how poorly Tebow would play for nearly the entire game before somehow pulling out a win in the end. It was the kind of thing you don't even see in video games. To some extent, Nix has followed in these same footsteps.
Take a look at what Nix has been able to do in fourth-quarter comeback and game-winning drive situations compared to the top quarterbacks selected in the first round of the 2024 NFL draft along with him:
11-4 Bo Nix
— Trevor Judge (@TrevorJudge) September 29, 2026
5-4 Jayden Daniels
9-14 Caleb Williams
1-8 Drake Maye https://t.co/ov2ofrhjpk
The Broncos have followed a trend of starting slow in games and much of that is attributed to Nix as the quarterback of the team. Sunday night's game was a perfect example. He had a terrible first half in which the Broncos scored no points before leading the offense to 23 points in the second half, looking like a completely different player in the process.
Perhaps Nix has a little of Elway and Tebow in him, or perhaps it's all just a part of the Mile High magic that Broncos Country thrives on and that fans around the league have a hard time explaining.
Either way, what Nix is doing, combined with what has been done before him, makes it undeniable that the Broncos have the best history of comeback victories in NFL history.
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This article originally appeared on Broncos Wire: Bo Nix continues Broncos' comeback history started by Elway and followed by Tebow
