Many Broncos fans are wondering how serious Bo Nix’s ankle injury is. The quarterback helped the team win the AFC Championship Game in an overtime win against the Bills on January 17, but he fractured his right ankle and was noticeably limping as he walked toward the sidelines during the game-winning kick. It’s already been determined that Nix’s broken ankle will take him out for the rest of the season, and that surgery will be required to repair the bone. Since then, doctors have weighed in on how long the recovery timeline will be for the 25-year-old to return to the field.
When will Bo Nix recover from his broken ankle?
The recovery time for Bo Nix to heal from his ankle injury is expected to end before he enters Week 1 for the 2026-7 NFL season in October, according to orthopedic sports medicine specialist Dr. Forrest Anderson.
While Anderson is not part of Nix’s healthcare team, he has performed surgeries for these types on injuries on other athletes.
“[Nix] should have plenty of time for rehab in the offseason,” Anderson explained in a segment with FOX31 Denver. “With the technology we have these days to stabilize these fractures, the goal for him is definitely to come back Week One, and I think that would be pretty reasonable.”
That said, the doctor believes that the Broncos should consider giving Nix enough time to heal properly. “I wouldn’t be surprised if they take him out of the preseason, however,” he added.
Forrester also delved into what the surgery Nix will likely be when he goes onto the operating table on Tuesday. “The surgery basically for this kind of thing involves two parts. The first part is fixing the bony injury. So that’s basically using a plate and screws often to put the bone back together anatomically the way that it was before. The second part is stabilizing that ligament complex… so basically, you fix the fibula back to the tibia going across the joint line.”
It usually takes somewhere between 10 to 12 weeks for patients to heal from an ankle fracture, though it may take as long as four months for a full range of motion to return, as noted by ESPN.
Nix has experience dealing with this type of injury, as he previously sustained a season-ending right ankle fracture in November 2021 while playing for Auburn University.
49ers George Kittle suffered a severe achilles injury that has taken him out of this season and will likely sideline him for much of next season as well.
