The Denver Broncos interior offensive line will be a crucial element towards the success or failure of the offense this upcoming season. Going into training camp, the Broncos might have the best overall depth they’ve had in the last handful of years.
Denver Broncos center job up for grabs
The Denver Broncos starting offensive line is set for the most part, with the exception of the center position. Going into training camp, this will be an important question to answer as the team prepares for the possibility of rookie quarterback Bo Nix starting if he wins the QB battle.
Alex Forsyth, Luke Wattenberg, and veteran Sam Mustipher will each compete at camp for the opportunity to anchor the middle of the offensive line unit in between Quinn Meinerz and Ben Powers.
Forsyth and Wattenberg each received a higher amount of team reps with the first team offense during OTAs and minicamp. Forsyth’s background and prior experience with Nix from their time together at the University of Oregon makes the competition even more interesting, considering the chemistry they possess with each other. The Broncos pretty much red-shirted him last season, and Lloyd Cushenberry’s departure in free agency opened things up for him and Wattenberg.
Wattenberg has continued to grow and develop since his rookie season and has the ability to play both guard and tackle, whereas Forsyth is viewed more as a true center. The third-year player had an impressive offseason program and will be a player to watch for during training camp in July.
Mustipher was signed later in free agency by Denver but didn’t appear to get reps with the first-team offense during OTAs or minicamp. When the pads come on, it will be interesting to see if the rotation changes from Sean Payton and how a rotation of centers impacts each of the QBs in their ongoing position battle.
Broncos guard duo could emerge into one of the NFL’s best in 2024
The Denver Broncos offense has to find a way to get itself going this upcoming season, and Ben Powers and Quinn Meinerz could be the two key components. Meinerz is viewed as one of the best guards in all of football, and Powers was viewed that way when he was a member of the Baltimore Ravens just two years ago. Denver’s offense struggled with consistency last season, but Powers and Meinerz were bright spots on the interior.
With both players returning to the same offensive system and blocking scheme, there’s an expressed level of comfortability that both players have acknowledged going into training camp.
“It’s been great to come back and have the same staff, same coaches and same familiar faces,” Meinerz said during OTAs. “It’s been really awesome to have the same language, the same kind of plays and the same kinds of blocks I’m expected to do. I can spend the offseason before this process starts knowing what is expected of me and what the system actually is. It’s been great.”
Both players will have an intricate part in the success and aid of whoever wins the starting center job, but if the entire offensive line can mesh well together, the Broncos offense should be more consistent, especially in the rushing department.
Broncos overall depth on the interior OL
Regardless of how the center position battle plays out, the Denver Broncos overall depth on the offensive line is stout from a two-deep perspective, meaning that regardless of who starts, the depth behind the starters should be quality.
Behind Ben Powers and Quinn Meinerz, players like Calvin Throckmorton and rookie Nick Gargiulo will likely make up the depth behind them as their backups. Throckmorton and Gargiulo both have the ability to play center if needed, while Wattenberg can play guard if asked.
Mustipher is the team’s biggest question mark from a depth standpoint, and if he doesn’t win the starting job in training camp, the Broncos’ overall depth at guard and center will likely be a combination of Forsyth/Wattenberg, Gargiulo, and Throckmorton.
