The Broncos booked their ticket to the AFC championship game after a thrilling upset over Josh Allen and the Bills, but their monumental playoff victory came at an ugly cost: quarterback Bo Nix fractured a bone in his ankle and will be out for the rest of the season.
NFL fans were understandably shocked after hearing about Nix’s injury since he played out the entire game and didn’t appear to be in any serious pain, based on the CBS’s camera shots of him at the end of the fourth quarter. Nix apparently suffered his broken ankle on a designed run on the second-to-last play in the overtime win, but he got up fine after getting tackled and even jogged a little afterward.
In the minutes following his ankle injury, Nix was able to walk off the field under his own power and looked like his usual self during a quick postgame interview with Tracy Wolfson. Some fans were left wondering how he could have suffered such a serious injury and not have shown any visible pain from it.
A new video from the game may have revealed a glimpse into the potential pain Nix was feeling. Cameras caught Nix standing on the sidelines as Broncos kicker Wil Lutz was preparing for the game-winning field goal, and Nix was seen grimacing a few times in clear pain. At one point, he closed his eyes and bent down, likely feeling the lingering after-effects of his broken ankle:
Bo Nix grimacing in pain on the sideline as Wil Lutz was lining up for the game winning field goal pic.twitter.com/4FicESNwha
— Romi Bean (@Romi_Bean) January 18, 2026
NFL sideline reporter Amber Theoharis, who was working the Broncos-Bills game, allegedly said of that moment, “Bo’s talking to trainers and something doesn’t look right” and added that he was repeatedly moving his ankle in a circular motion.
Then, when the game’s cameras turned on Nix immediately following Lutz’s successful field goal, he appeared to react in a subdued and muted manner. Other players and coaches around him raised their hands in jubilation and excitedly embraced him, but Nix notably didn’t move very much and only took off his helmet:
Bo Nix taking the moment in 🙌 @Broncos pic.twitter.com/0TTIbvx1vb
— NFL (@NFL) January 18, 2026
It’s truly unbelievable that Nix was able to fight through his ankle injury to celebrate the playoff win with his teammates on the field, but it looks like that’s exactly what happened.
Broncos backup Jarrett Stidham will get the start under center in the AFC title game, where Denver will host either the Patriots or Texans next Sunday.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as New Video Shows Bo Nix’s Painful Look on Sidelines After Fracturing His Ankle.
