The Denver Broncos may have just wrapped up their third day of training camp, but a few members of the team are already seeing a difference in the offensive line.
After a disappointing 2016, it was clear that there needed to be some changes along the offensive front. By picking up veteran guard Ronald Leary and tackle Menelik Watson, the Broncos feel like they’ve got the players they need to revitalize the offense.
As a result, they’ve been able to run the ball through three days in camp. Even in shorts, Leary is proud of what they’ve done on the ground so far.
“It’s big,” Leary said on Saturday. “They’re preaching that we want to be a physical team that’s going to run the ball. I think that’s a challenge to all of us – that we need to be physical. I need to hone in on my technique and knock some people around.”
Leary knows what a successful run game looks like. He helped clear the way for a Dallas Cowboys team that finished the 2016 season ranked second in rushing offense. He doesn’t see any reason why he can’t do the same thing in Denver.
“We can run it the same way we ran it at Dallas,” Leary said. “We’ve got the ability to run it here. Dallas, we were that, but I’m in Denver now. I love Denver; I love the line we have and we’ve become closer and closer. If they want us to run the ball, we’ll take that as a challenge and run the ball.”
According to Leary, the major difference between Denver and Dallas so far is how close the offensive linemen were on and off the field. He is trying to use camp as a way to form bonds with his new teammates, and feels like he can already see the results.
“I think the biggest thing has been that we have a lot of new faces on the O-line,” Leary said. “Getting everybody together on the same page and learning the playbook together, it’s all brand new. We have a new o-line coach (Jeff Davidson). The more we do together the better it we’ll be as an O-line.
“I just try to do everything as a group. We were a real tight group in Dallas and that’s what we’re going to be here. The more we do off the field the better you play on the field together. We’re getting together a lot and doing a lot of stuff together, and just always talking ball and talking about life in general. I think all of that is going to transfer.”
Watson knows that once he and the rest of the offensive line knocks off the rust from the break, things will start becoming a bit easier.
“For us, it’s been getting our legs right and getting our legs back under us, getting our technique down, footwork and hands,” Watson said. “Coming off of the [summer] break, you can be a bit rusty. The legs are a little heavy the first two days, but just getting that together and now starting the communication things. Once you get into a routine, then it’s all about expanding the game, working on other things and going outside your frame a little bit to add some new things to the toolbox. Once you do that, coach can call anything he wants. We know as a line that he can pull something out from eight weeks ago and we can execute it. That’s what it’s all about.”
When it comes to the quarterback competition, Leary feels that the offensive line plays a larger role than people think in the decision. If the offensive line doesn’t do what they’re supposed to, it doesn’t matter who the quarterback is.
