Bo Nix has been saying for many weeks he is fully healthy and certainly nobody doubted that Friday night.

The Broncos quarterback, playing in a game for the first time since suffering a broken right ankle in the playoffs last January, was impressive in a 33-13 loss to Green Bay at Empower Field in Denver’s second preseason game.

Nix completed 6 of 9 passes for 76 yards and a touchdown and had a 129.9 passer rating in two drives. Broncos coach Sean Payton had said he would get about 14 snaps and, when a penalty was included, that’s how many he got. Nix had not played in Denver’s first preseason game, a 27-7 win on Aug. 14 at Atlanta.

However, Denver’s vaunted defense didn’t live up to its billing. After the Broncos led 10-7 in the second quarter, they were outscored 26-3 the rest of the way as their eight-game preseason winning streak was snapped.

“Obviously, that wasn’t good enough,” Payton said. “There were a lot of things (that the Broncos didn’t do well) … We can’t just not pay attention to … these important steps toward the regular season.”

At least Payton didn’t find any fault with how Nix looked. On Denver’s first drive, Nix hit wide receiver Jaylen Waddle over the middle for a 35-yard reception and soon connected with running back RJ Harvey on a 21-yard touchdown pass down the right side to tie the score 7-7.

“I thought (Nix) was solid,” Payton said.

Nix played in his first game since being hurt in a 33-30 win over Buffalo in a divisional playoff game on Jan. 17. He sat out Denver’s 10-7 loss to New England in the AFC Championship Game on Jan. 25 and had two surgeries during the offseason.

“When I got out there, it was like riding a bike,’’ Nix said. “Nothing really changed.”

Nix said he was “excited” and “not really nervous” when he woke up Friday and that he “understood it was just another game.” He said his “strongest emotion” was the pass to Waddle.

Waddle, the much-ballyhooed acquisition from Miami in March, played in his first Denver preseason game and was only in on the first series while only having just the one catch. He sat out against the Falcons due to muscle tightness in his leg.

“You can’t really explain the type of player he is,” Nix said. “You just got to go out there and throw him the ball and just understand it’s a little bit different. He’s a really great football player. He adds a lot to our team.”

Nix gave way after the first two drives to Jarrett Stidham, who is battling Sam Ehlinger to be the backup quarterback. After looking good at Atlanta, Stidham didn’t do much while playing the bulk of the second quarter and all of the third quarter. He completed 9 of 15 passes for 82 yards while throwing a second-quarter interception to Mark Perry.

“I thought we did some good things offensively, but obviously a lot to clean up,’’ Stidham said. “We’ll look at the film (Saturday) with the coaches and see what we need to do to get better.”

Ehlinger played the fourth quarter, taking over with Denver trailing 30-13. With the game out of reach, he threw just two passes, completing both for 10 yards.

The Broncos had just 225 yards on offense while the Packers gained 299. Denver struggled on the ground, having 70 yards to Green Bay’s 118.

“It wasn’t good,” Payton said. “We had too many minus plays, too many penalties offensively (with 10 overall).”

Broncos running back J.K. Dobbins suited up but sat out for the second straight preseason game. Dobbins, who last season suffered a season-ending foot injury in Week 10, might not also play in the preseason finale next Friday against Minnesota.

Among those also dressing out but not playing for a second straight preseason game were Broncos starting center Luke Wattenberg and receiver Marvin Mims Jr. Both are working their way back from injuries.

With backup center Alex Forsyth also out for a second straight week, Calvin Throckmorton again got the nod at center for Denver. He played the first half before giving way to rookie Gavin Ortega in the second half.

While Nix’s start was encouraging for the Broncos, their start on defense wasn’t. On the opening drive, Packers quarterback Jordan Love led them on a 12-play, 63-yard drive that culminated in his 11-yard touchdown pass to running back Marshawn Lloyd.

Love left the game after that one drive, and Nix’s touchdown pass soon tied the score 7-7. The Broncos’ first-string defense then forced a punt after Tyrod Taylor came in at quarterback for Green Bay.

On Denver’s second drive led by Nix, Wil Lutz kicked a 53-yard field goal early in the second quarter for a 10-7 lead. But the Packers came on a 68-yard kickoff return by Pierre Strong Jr., which led to a game-tying 51-yard field goal by Trey Smack.

The Packers later in the quarter took a 17-10 lead on a 2-yard touchdown pass from Taylor to former Colorado stalwart Will Sheppard. Smack added field goals of 59 and 43 yards for a 23-10 Green Bay halftime lead.

Lutz added a 38-yard field goal to cut the deficit to 23-13 late in the third quarter. But a 3-yard touchdown run by Jaden Nixon early in the fourth quarter and a 38-yard field goal by Smack late in the quarter extended the lead to 33-13.

The Broncos lost cornerback Riley Moss on the first drive of the game due to a rib injury. He was hurt when he recovered what the Broncos thought was a fumble caused by Pat Surtain II on a hit on Christian Watson, but replay showed the receiver was down.

Moss was replaced by Jahdae Barron. When asked about Moss after the game, Payton first said he was “good” and then said, “We’ll see.”

But at least Nix gave Broncos fans something to cheer about Friday night.

“It was just very smooth, very easy to get back out there and go,” Nix said. “Honestly, the other 10 guys in the huddle made it pretty easy for me as well.”