Even before the Denver Broncos selected Oregon quarterback Bo Nix in the first round of the draft in April, experts often compared Nix to Drew Brees and said Nix would be an ideal fit for Sean Payton.

Nix is ​​flattered by the comparisons to Brees, but knows he still has to prove himself in the NFL. Brees recently spoke out with his opinion on Denver’s rookie quarterback.

“I’m really impressed with him,” Brees said in an interview with DJ Siddiqi of RG.org. “A couple of things jumped out at me — first, the guy had 60 starts in college, 60 high-level starts at Auburn and Oregon. That’s significant. That’s significant in the growth and development of a young quarterback.”

Brees believes Nix’s extensive college experience will help him quickly adapt to the NFL game.

“When you talk about young quarterbacks getting a chance to play in the NFL, I think you need at least 50 quality starts,” Brees told Siddiqui. “Whether that happens in college or in the NFL, I mean, if you draft a guy who only had 20 college starts but is a top prospect and has incredible talent, that’s great, but chances are he’s going to go on a team that has some holes to fill, right?

“It’s going to be a tough fight. It’s going to be difficult and the guy needs about another season and a half or two before you really know what you’ve got.”

Having started 61 games in college and now one game in the NFL, Brees believes Nix is ​​ahead of typical rookie quarterbacks.

After mixed results in Denver’s season opener last week, Nix will look to bounce back in Week 2 against the Pittsburgh Steelers.