Nix's 3 TDs lead Broncos to win over lowly Panthers

DENVER (AP) — Bo Nix threw three touchdown passes and ran for another and Denver's defense throttled Bryce Young in the Broncos' 28-14 win Sunday over the injury-riddled Carolina Panthers.

In the best game yet of his rookie season, the Broncos quarterback threw for 284 yards. He found Nate Adkins from 3 yards and Adam Trautman from 19 yards in the second quarter as the Broncos (5-3) built a 21-7 halftime lead.

The Panthers (1-7), who listed a whopping 22 players on their injury report and lost two more players Sunday, lost for the fifth consecutive time.

Young was 24 for 37 for 224 yards with two TDs and two interceptions.

He wasn't the only Carolina player off target — the Broncos made it 28-7 after a failed fake punt by the Panthers from their 24 in the third quarter. Safety Sam Franklin Jr. was wide open but punter Johnny Hekker airmailed the attempt on fourth-and-6 and the Broncos took over.

Four plays later, Nix side-armed a 9-yard TD pass to running back Jaleel McLaughlin.

Patrick Surtain II, who allowed Carolina's first-drive touchdown, intercepted Young at the Denver 11 on the Panthers' next drive.

Courtland Sutton caught eight of Nix's passes for 100 yards, his first 100-yard game since Week 2 of the 2022 season against Houston. However, he fumbled at the 1 on his final reception just before the two-minute warning when Trevin Wallace punched it out and Shy Tuttle recovered his second fumble of the game.

Young was terrific in the two-minute drill, driving Carolina 98 yards in 10 plays with the payoff a 15-yard touchdown throw to Jalen Coker with 18 seconds left.

Benched after Week 2, Young returned as the Panthers' starting QB when Andy Dalton sprained his right thumb in an auto accident on Tuesday. Dalton didn't practice all week because he couldn't grip the football properly, so rookie Jack Plummer served as Young's backup Sunday.

Things started off well for Young, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2023 NFL draft.

After Tuttle recovered Lil’Jordan Humphrey’s fumble at midfield on the game’s opening drive, Young drove the Panthers to a 7-0 lead on rookie Xavier Legette’s 6-yard touchdown catch against Surtain, who returned from a concussion he sustained two weeks ago.

Not only was that Young’s first touchdown throw of the season, but it also marked the first opening-drive TD of his career.

The Panthers only managed one first down the rest of the half, however, and the Broncos began to dominate in all phases.

Nik Bonitto had a sack for the sixth consecutive game, the Broncos' longest such streak since Von Miller's six-game run in 2018, and Ja'Quan McMillian intercepted Young in the end zone midway through the fourth quarter.

Young, who fell to 2-17 in his career and 0-3 this season, was without starting wide receivers Diontae Johnson and Adam Thielen. Johnson, who has been the subject of trade rumors, was ruled out after missing practice all week with a rib injury. Thielen has missed the past five games with a hamstring injury.

Panthers: TE Feleipe Franks sustained a concussion on punt coverage and OLB D.J. Johnson sprained his right ankle. Both were ruled out at halftime.

Broncos: TE Lucas Kroll left with a shoulder injury in the fourth quarter but returned.

Panthers: Host the New Orleans Saints on Sunday.

Broncos: Visit the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday.

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