Since Sean Payton took back the play-calling entering Week 5, Bo Nix and the Denver Broncos' offense have been much better.

It was a gradual burn, and that build-up is still ongoing, but Payton has the Broncos back to playing a semblance of winning offense. Most importantly, Nix's confidence has returned — flooding back in Week 7 after his 62-yard touchdown run.

Each week since then, Nix has looked a little bit better, and after beating the Carolina Panthers on the road last Sunday, I don't think too many people are still worried about his football psyche. He's hunting with the football again, challenging defenses vertically, and playing with confidence.

Payton is happy to see the improvements on offense, but with the Broncos hitting their bye at 7-2, there are still several things he wants to clean up.

"I'm pleased with some of the change. Some of the things we're doing better," Payton told Colin Cowherd during an appearance on The Herd. "There's still that yellow tape around the offense that says 'work in progress.' It just is. And yet, I would say this: so much of what we're able to do offensively—run the ball, have balance—can really make what Bo has to do, make his job easier."

A Warning To the OL

What exactly does Payton want to fix over the Broncos' bye? He pointed to the blocking up front, and even hinted that he and the coaches could consider making changes to the starting five, given the offensive line's ongoing struggles and the unit's depth.

"Now, getting specific, like, man, I'm watching the cut-ups from the game we just played, and we didn't block them very well. I'm just being honest, so that has to improve," Payton told Cowherd. "We've got plenty of depth on the offensive line, so during this bye, we're going to look at all those little things closely because the tape that's surrounding the offense needs to come down and the family needs to move in. So that's kind of where we're at."

You've got to love Payton likening the Broncos' offense to a domicile that's under construction, with the yellow cautionary tape surrounding it and whatnot. As he said, the work on the building has been done, and it's time for the family to move into its new home, meaning that it's time for the Broncos to move beyond the struggles they've had with even the most fundamental things on offense.

Thankfully, the Broncos' bye came as close to the midway point of the season as it gets, giving them plenty of tape to self-scout and enough games left to make the type of meaningful changes that could propel them into the playoffs.

"That's the cool thing about the bye right now is you really get this chance to take a zoom and look real close at what's been going well, what hasn't, why hasn't it been, and let's not kid ourselves," Payton said.

Bye Week Expectations: Keep Them in Check

It sounds like Payton and his coaches will be brutally honest with themselves about what they've seen on tape. That being said, I wouldn't expect to see Payton make wholesale changes to the offensive line.

If the Broncos do anything, though, they might want to look at making a change at center. Luke Wattenberg has been one of the NFL's worst centers this season, and as frustrating as that is one year removed from the Broncos giving him a four-year, $48 million extension, they can't "kid" themselves.

Wattenberg has been a liability, and he's made life much more difficult for left guard Ben Powers and All-Pro right guard Quinn Meinerz, who have had to cover for his miscues, mishaps, and mental errors, leading to some social media backlash. The Broncos have Alex Forsyth under contract through this season, and he's got plenty of starting experience and time with Nix, so it might make sense to let Wattenberg sit for a spell to see if things improve.

Jonah Coleman has sparked the Broncos' run game, but it hasn't led to a sudden reversal in fortunes. The Broncos only rushed for 82 yards as a team last week in Carolina, with an average gain of 3.0 yards, compared to the Panthers producing 96 yards on the ground with an average gain of 4.8 yards.

Coleman can create on his own, and that's a blessing, but he can't do it all by himself, and Payton knows that. Payton and run game coordinator Zach Strief must figure out how to get this O-line rowing in the same direction, but that's partly what the bye is for.

Payton Closes Ranks Around Bo Nix

In that same conversation with Cowherd, Payton went to bat for his quarterback, making it clear that the Broncos believe Nix to be their franchise quarterback and pushing back at the critics who question his arm strength.

"I know we have the right quarterback in the building," Payton said of Nix. "In other words, I've just seen it. I've seen the behavior, the things that you need in clutch moments, the arm strength. That was probably the biggest false narrative relative to him coming out was his arm strength, and he's got a way-above-average arm talent."

During Nix's early-season slump, the Broncos reportedly became "concerned" with his hesitancy, but they never lost faith in him as their current and future franchise quarterback. Payton wanted to see Nix "let 'er rip," and that tide began to turn in Week 7 in the Broncos' road win over the Arizona Cardinals.

Over the past three weeks, Nix has exceeded the 200-yard passing mark in each game, and he's been using his legs more often. The assumption was that Nix's early-season slump was a combination of his psyche healing from his ankle injury suffered last January and the Broncos' brutal initial schedule.

Nix looked spooked and overwhelmed at times, but that was punctuated by outbursts of tremendous quarterback play, as seen in Week 2 against the Jacksonville Jaguars, Week 3 against the Los Angeles Rams, and in the first half of Week 6 against the Seattle Seahawks. Nix's pocket presence was terribly inconsistent; his footwork and technical foundation were out of whack, and he looked like he was pressing.

Entering the Week 10 bye, though, all of that feels like ancient history. And despite the obvious mental struggles Nix was going through in his recovery from ankle surgery, he still found ways to win games, even against some of the NFL's tier-one competition.

Payton's Advice to Nix

Nix's resilience and ability to overcome adversity are two of the intangible traits that drew Payton and the Broncos to him, and they likely play a big part in the club's ongoing faith in him as its franchise quarterback. During the period when Nix was struggling, Payton pulled him aside and talked to him, pointing to the enormity of the schedule the NFL gave the Broncos to start this season.

And yet, Nix prevailed — far more often than not, defeating some great teams.

"The quarterback thing, he's going to be outstanding," Payton said of Nix. "And I shared with him, I said, 'Hey, week to week in our league,' I said, 'Do you realize in three weeks, no one will have a clue—last year, no one could tell you about the Jet game last year. No one's going to be able to tell you one thing. Now, you've just gone through a gauntlet of some of the better defenses in football. You've seen the Chiefs twice, you've seen Jacksonville, you've seen Seattle, like, that's a stretch.'"

It hasn't been easy for Nix, but he has found his footing. The resistance training of the first eight games has built up one heck of a football callus.

Nix is playing with great confidence again, and his aura feels no different than it did last year against Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills in the divisional round. Despite all the imperfections, despite all the obstacles of the schedule, Nix has the Broncos at 7-2, leading the AFC West, and in position to wrest the No. 1 playoff seed away from the Bills.

"We're at 7-2, and that's the positive," Payton told Cowherd.

The Takeaway

Given the schedule Denver has faced, 7-2 is a triumph of willpower and fortitude. Payton deserves a lot of credit, and so does Nix. But the job isn't done yet.

Payton's got to fix this run game. And as he's said, it's long past due.

We'll see what happens between now and Week 16, but it feels like the Broncos are on a collision course with the Bills to determine the No. 1 playoff seed in the AFC.