ENGLEWOOD, Colo. -- Denver Broncos coach Sean Payton said Wednesday that while quarterback Bo Nix's recovery from two surgeries on his right ankle continues to go as well as the team hoped, he will not play in its preseason opener Friday against the Falcons in Atlanta.
Payton added that the third-year QB will play in the Broncos' final two preseason games against the Packers and Vikings, both in Denver.
"Bo won't play in this game; he'll play next week," Payton said after Wednesday's practice. "If we were playing a [regular-season] game -- he wants to play; he'll play the next two weeks."
Although Payton didn't mention the playing surface as a reason for Nix not playing Friday, Mercedes-Benz Stadium used grass for World Cup games this summer but has artificial turf for Falcons games. The Broncos, meanwhile, use grass at Empower Field at Mile High.
Payton said Jarrett Stidham and Sam Ehlinger each will play a half against the Falcons, with the former expected to get the start.
The Broncos' other starters are expected to suit up for about 15 plays. That includes linebacker Jonathon Cooper, who was arrested twice on domestic violence charges in a seven-day span in June and is facing a felony charge of second-degree assault by strangulation and three misdemeanors, including violating a protection order.
"He'll play," Payton said. "... You have to keep gathering the information."
Nix suffered a fractured right ankle in the closing minutes of the Broncos' AFC divisional-round playoff win over the Buffalo Bills in January, 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 only a limited basis in their mandatory minicamp in June.
He has practiced fully since the start of training camp, though, and Payton said Nix has taken the same number of snaps in this training camp as he did in last summer's .
"If we were playing a [regular-season] game, I would say he would play [and] he'd probably [be] ... 100%," Payton said. "... He's right where we were hoping he'd be."
Nix has said during training camp that he feels "completely normal" during practice and that the offseason surgeries will not cause him to hesitate running during games.
"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," Nix said earlier in camp. "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."
Payton said Wednesday that there was a throw Nix made on the run to a wide receiver during a training camp practice "that was a real good sign, a real good throw."
Friday also will be the first game since Payton surrendered playcalling duties this offseason to Davis Webb, his offensive coordinator. Webb was Denver's quarterbacks coach the previous three seasons and called plays in its preseason win over the Arizona Cardinals last year, when the Broncos gained over 500 yards on offense.
