ENGLEWOOD, Colo. -- Denver Broncos quarterback Bo Nix says he will not hesitate to scramble on his surgically repaired right ankle this season and that when he's on the move is "when I feel at my best."
Nix, who suffered a fractured right ankle in the closing minutes of the Broncos' AFC divisional round win over the Buffalo Bills, had an initial surgery to repair the fracture in the days following the game and then had a follow-up surgery in April to treat bone spurs in the same ankle. He missed most of the on-field work in the Broncos' offseason program and threw on a limited basis in the team's mandatory minicamp in June.
After Saturday's practice, the Broncos' third of training camp, Nix was asked if the injury and extended recovery would limit his desire to scramble or be used on designed runs in the months ahead.
"Absolutely not," Nix said. "I'm going to roll [out]. I'm going to be as athletic as I can be. ... It's a strength of ours, and so we've got to use our strengths. For me, that's when I feel at my best, that's when I feel free. When I'm playing like that, when I'm moving around, it's a good thing."
Nix rushed for 356 yards last season -- third on the Broncos -- and his five rushing touchdowns were second on the team. But Broncos coach Sean Payton called Nix's ability to extend plays in the passing game with his mobility and escape sacks "one of his superpowers."
Nix led the NFL in pass attempts last season with 612 but was sacked 22 times. The Broncos had the lowest sacks per pass attempt in the league last season at 3.75%.
"It's hard to sack some quarterbacks, and he's one of them," Payton said after Saturday's practice. "That was something we saw on college tape, and in our league, when you take a sack, just do the analytics on it, getting points on that drive or likelihood to kick a field goal, it all drops dramatically."
Nix was medically cleared to open training camp. He has taken his usual allotment of work with the first-team offense, which has included several scrambles and throws on the run, including a touchdown pass to wide receiver Marvin Mims Jr. as Nix rolled to his right Saturday during team drills.
The quarterback said he isn't looking to plow over defenders week after week but won't always slide either if a first down is on the line.
"It's always the situation," Nix said. "If it's a first down, I'll go down, not take unnecessary hits. At the same time, a key third, fourth down, you have to go get the first down, and that's why you train hard in the offseason to withstand those hits. It's all about being smart. I'm not going to be dumb. I know I'm not going to run over everybody on the field. I just got to be smart, put us, put me, in a good situation and move on to the next play."
Nix added since camp opened, "I feel great, feel normal. Nothing's holding me back out there. Playing like I normally do, and I feel really good and continue to push and progress and also continue to get ready for this long season."
Payton has said he expects most or all of the team's starters to play at least some in the preseason, but he hasn't addressed Nix's playing time. The Broncos open the preseason Aug. 14 against the Falcons in Atlanta.