Bo Nix lifts Broncos to sixth straight win with two huge plays late against Texans

The Denver Broncos have now won six games in a row following their Week 9 win over the Houston Texans. All of the old cliches applied in this one. It was a dogfight. It was a heavyweight slugfest. It was two great defenses playing a game of field position, looking to see which one would crack first. 

Bo Nix did not play a great game. He completed less than 50 percent of his passes and he threw an ugly interception in the first half that killed a Denver drive and led to three points for the Texans. The Texans were also without C.J. Stroud for much of the game as he was injured following this hit in the first half. 

Prayers up for C.J. Stroud 🙏🙏
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Davis Mills came on in relief and played well for the Texans, keeping them in the lead for much of the game. But after the Broncos tied it at 15-15 in the fourth quarter, it became a duel between two teams, each looking to win the game the same way... with stout defense and needing just a big play or two on offense. 

It was the Broncos who got those plays from their quarterback. 

Nix had trouble finding creases to throw the ball against the Houston defense. Nothing came easily, but curiously, he hadn't attempted to make many plays with his feet in the game... until the final moments. 

Facing 2nd-and-7 from their own 39-yard line with 44 seconds remaining to play, Nix rolled out to his right but when nothing came open, he ran the ball back to his left, finding a ton of running room all the way to the Houston 36-yard line. He got out of bounds to save time and the 25-yard gain put the Broncos in field-goal position. 

Three plays later, Nix added another 9-yard gain on a designed run to put the Broncos in great position at the Texans' 16-yard line. On the next play, Wil Lutz booted a 34-yard field goal as time expired to give the Broncos an 18-15 victory. 

Nix was credited with just three rushes in this game, with those two coming on the Broncos' final possession. Though it was another ugly, gritty win, those two plays, particularly the first one, determined the outcome of this game. Nix picked the perfect spot to make the game's biggest play. 

READ: 4 players who could help solve Broncos' biggest need ahead of trade deadline

The Broncos improve to 7-2 with the win and will now have a short week as they will host the Las Vegas Raiders on Thursday Night Football. 

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