Rookie quarterback Bo Nix and the Denver Broncos are on the road to success for the first time this season.

Trailing 0-2 ahead of Sunday's away game against the undefeated Tampa Bay Buccaneers, no one really gave the Broncos a chance.

From the start in Tampa, the Broncos proved the skeptics wrong, outscoring the Bucs 14-0 in the first half, including a game-opening 70-yard touchdown drive that ended with a three-yard touchdown run by Nix on the ground.

Later in the first quarter, safety Brandon Jones intercepted a pass from Baker Mayfield, leading to a short field play and another touchdown for the Broncos.

This pretty much made the difference, which ultimately led to a surprising 26-7 away victory for the Broncos.

Key takeaways from the Denver Broncos' big win in Week 3

There's a lot to see here. From Nix playing flawless football to running back Tyler Badie providing balance on offense, that side of the ball played well.

Defensively, the Broncos put tremendous pressure on Mayfield, including several players settling in the Buccaneers' backfield. Those are some of the key takeaways from Denver's big Week 3 win in Tampa.

Bo Nix shows the best performance of his young season

Much has been made of how this rookie from Oregon struggled through two games in the first round. In fact, I urged Broncos head coach Sean Payton to bench Nix in favor of Zach Wilson or Jarrett Stidham.

The young player proved critics wrong in Sunday's win over Tampa Bay. After throwing four interceptions in the first two games, Nix was not intercepted in this game and finished completing 25 of 36 passes for 216 yards while rushing for 47 yards and a touchdown on the ground.

“The kid was confident. I didn't see him bat an eyelid,” Payton told reporters after Sunday's win.

That's a long way from the first two games. Nix looked more composed in the pocket. He also wasn't sacked once, which is a testament to how well the Broncos' offensive line played in front of the rookie quarterback.

Broncos defense pressures Buccaneers QB Baker Mayfield

Denver's defense entered Sunday's game with four sacks in the first two weeks. Jonathon Cooper was the team's best player with two quarterback takedowns.

But that unit absolutely dominated the Buccaneers' offensive line on Sunday. That included seven sacks and nine quarterback hits against Mayfield. Defensive lineman Dondrea Tillman recorded the first two sacks of his young career. Cooper, Zach Allen, John Franklin-Myers, Nik Bonitto and Devon Key also contributed a sack each.

In reality, Denver's depth was on full display Sunday. It wasn't about one elite player. It was a group that came together to absolutely control the line of scrimmage against Tampa Bay. It's a big reason the Broncos earned their first win of the season.

Broncos find balance in the offense

Nix went into Sunday's game as the Broncos' best runner with 60 yards. Of course, that's not sustainable. Payton knew that. Denver's running backs were aware of that too.

Javonte Williams continued his early season woes with 12 yards on five attempts, but after a lost fumble in the second quarter led to Tampa's only touchdown of the game, he was all but forgotten.

Then it was all about a player named Tyler Badie, who had recently been signed off the practice squad and had a total of two career rushes before the game.

The Missouri product rushed for 70 yards on nine attempts, including a massive 43-yard run in the fourth quarter that gave the Broncos a field goal and a 26-7 lead.

Sure, the Broncos will need more from Williams in the future. But at least in one game, their running attack helped Nix a lot.

Patrick Surtain II dominates Mike Evans

This was one of my focuses before Sunday's game. If Surtain II wanted to prove his worth as the NFL's highest-paid cornerback, he had to face future Hall of Famer Mike Evans in Week 3.

Boy, he didn't disappoint in this game. Surtain II was pretty close to Evans' heels the entire game. Accordingly, the star receiver caught just two passes for 17 yards on three attempts. So you could say Surtain II pretty much shut down one side of the field.

When you consider what the Broncos did in the pass rush on Sunday, it's clear that their defense was absolutely dominant against an offense that was already running at full speed before Week 3.