The Denver Broncos‘ 23-16 loss for the Los Angeles Chargers was ugly at times, but there were a few silver linings. One of them watched Broncos rookie Troy Franklin catch his first-ever NFL touchdown pass.

And of course, Franklin’s first career touchdown came from his college-pro quarterback Bo Nix. After the game, Nix spoke about Franklin’s meaningful scoring amid the disappointment of a bitter division loss.

“It was huge. I knew he would do it eventually,” Nix said of Franklin. ‘(I) expected it. He expected it too. He ran a great route. We actually had a conversion on that stretch. He ran the right route, had a good field of view, saw the opening and got behind it on the baseline.”

It was a play the Broncos had practiced with an eye on the Chargers. During this iteration, when the chips were down, the quarterback and receiver worked together to hammer it home.

“We practiced that play this week and he was there for me. He got open and made the catch,” Nix continued about Franklin. “I thought that was perfect. I’m very excited about that. That was a great connection.”

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What further cemented the Oregon connection, so to speak, was the fact that it was Alex Forsyth who hit the ball to Nix, who then threw it to Franklin for a Broncos touchdown. This is how Nix’s thought process went. Pretty cool.

“I thought it was unique (that) we had an Oregon player break it, an Oregon player throw and an Oregon player catch it,” Nix said. “I don’t know if that’s ever happened in the NFL. Probably as long as the NFL has been around. I think it’s pretty cool.”

There’s a youth movement in Denver. It was great to see two rookies so heavily involved in the passing game.

Devaughn Vele led the team with four receptions for 78 yards, while Franklin hauled in two for 31 yards and that score. Going forward, Broncos head coach Sean Payton plans to continue emphasizing youth in the offensive game plan.

“We need to see these guys. We are a young team,” Payton said after the game. ‘I want to see this runner too. I want to see (RB Audric) Estime. We’re going to visit Vele and we’re going to see Franklin. We’re not waiting to redshirt these guys. We will continue to see each week their commitment to the plan and how they fit. This gives you confidence and experience.”

The Broncos will need a short memory and a quick refocus since it’s a short week turnaround. The Broncos travel to take on the New Orleans Saints on Thursday evening during Payton’s homecoming in the Bayou.

It will be loud and emotions will run high. The Broncos will need their young offensive core to answer the bell.

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