Watched every snap of his @ Oregon at least once while he was running Dillingham’s and Steins offenses. Both will tell you he took the keys before they anticipated him having full liberties with play calling. Of course, with his experience this shouldn’t be surprising.
Plenty examples of him reading and reacting to defensive sets (contrary to popular belief), looking off safeties, and making plays off-script. Oregon is pigeon-holed as being nothing more than quirky and check-down, particularly by fans of the team just to the north. If you want, you can find ample tape of his receivers dropping deep balls in 2023. I believe his adjusted completion percentage, if you take away drops, was around 85%. He is sneaky athletic and dialed-back his running last season cuz he understood the importance of him being on the field (Ty Thompson factor) and healthy unlike how he finished the prior season.
One of the best things I saw from Nix (maybe this isn't good news) came after a third down incompletion in a game they clearly had in hand. Bucky Irving ran a lazy route and then proceeded to drop the pass. Heading to the sideline Nix immediately approached Irving while hand gesturing how the route should have been run. Bucky made a beeline toward the bench without acknowledging Bo. Bo then turned to the RB coach to have a word. So, he gets it. Just cuz this one was in the bag doesn’t mean you stop executing. Goes hand-in-hand with maturity, I guess.
All those positives being said, he’s definitely NOT a first rounder and probably max’s out as a tricked-out Derek Carr. Which really isn’t that bad…but it’s Derek Carr. Properly slotted, he should be the league’s top back-up QB but of course someone will reach and pencil him in as their starter. I personally wouldn't look to him as the long-term answer for your team's #1 QB.
