Good morning, Broncos Country.
The Denver Broncos are 7-2 and hold the AFC West lead for now. That record is impressive all things considered. If you would have told me that would have been their record before the bye, I would have respectfully disagreed given the gauntlet of opponents they have played to date.
There is no doubt the Broncos have a lot of room for improvement. They haven’t been at their best but are certainly trending in the right direction. Over the next week, Denver will have the opportunity to rest, recuperate,
and also do some reflection on what they’ve accomplished this season. Moreover, what they need to do moving forward to have the best shot at earning the franchise’s fourth Lombardi Trophy.
Yesterday, Head Coach Sean Payton spoke with Colin Cowherd on the status of the team. If you haven’t had a chance to watch the interview, you certainly should at the link above. One of big questions was Cowherd asked for was Payton’s assessment of the offense in the first half of the season.
“The cool thing about the bye right now is you really get a chance and zoom, and look really close what’s been going well, what hasn’t, and why hasn’t it been—and let’s not be kidding ourselves,” stated Payton.
He went on to exert extreme confidence in Bo Nix. The third-year quarterback hasn’t made the huge jump fans were expecting this year. Nevertheless, Payton was adamant that the team has the right signal caller behind center. Despite some struggles, he is happy with what he has seen from Nix going up against some very tough defenses.
Payton went on to talk about what they can do to set up Nix for better success in the second part of the season. Without hesitation, he discussed a position group that has experienced some regression this season at a few positions—the offensive line.
“I’m watching the cutups from the game we just played [versus the Carolina Panthers]. We didn’t block them very well. I’m just being honest—that has to improve. We have plenty of depth on the offensive line. During this bye, we’re going to look at all those little things closely,” added Payton.
I’m certainly not an offensive line expert by any means. Though I think it’s safe to say the Broncos have only had two consistent starters in their offensive trenches. Those would be left tackle Garett Bolles and right guard Quinn Meinerz. When it comes to center Luke Wattenberg, left guard Ben Powers, and right tackle Mike McGlinchey—all three have struggled and haven’t been at their best this season.
I’d be skeptical that the Broncos would consider benching McGlinchey. I also find it hard to believe they would bench Wattenberg for Alex Forsyth. However, I wouldn’t be surprised if Powers was replaced. Last season when he got hurt, Powers was replaced by Alex Palcewzki and he performed admirably. Well enough for Denver to give him a multi-year extension this offseason. Powers had a restructure that lowered his base salary significantly but upped his guarantees.
As noted in a feed post yesterday, Powers has struggled this season. In nine games, Powers has been credited with 14 blown blocks per SIS Data Hub. Ten of those have been pass blocks with four of them credit against the run. Though based on the eye test, I’d say they are drastically underestimating his issues paving lanes for the Broncos’ backs in the run game.
We’ll just have to wait and see if the Broncos wind up making a change on their offensive line. Based on Payton’s discussion with Cowherd, that seems like a legitimate possibility. Denver certainly has to be better up front in the trenches if they want to be top-level competitors the rest of the way.
What do you think, Broncos Country? Should Denver make a change on the offensive line? If so, what position and who do you feel should be inserted into the starting lineup. Sound off in the comments section and let me know.
As always, thank you for reading. Here is today’s slate of articles for Horse Tracks.
