With the preseason over and the initial 53-man roster set, the Denver Broncos now turn their focus preparing for the gridiron battles to come in the 2026 regular season. After a 14-win campaign in 2025, the Broncos have one of the toughest schedules in the NFL.
To begin their quest for a fourth Lombardi Trophy, the Broncos will face a familiar and formidable foe in the Kansas City Chiefs. It doesn’t get any bigger than going head-to-head against a division rival in primetime—and that’s what the Broncos will under
the bright lights of Arrowhead Stadium on Monday, September 14th.
In order to make their Super Bowl aspirations become a reality, the Broncos’ offensive line needs to be dominant. Since Head Coach Sean Payton took over, the offensive front five have went from an underperforming unit to one of the league’s best. Across various rankings and metrics, the team’s pass blocking has been superb.
However, they’ve been inconsistent in the run game. Over the past two seasons, Broncos Country has witnessed what happens when the rushing attack fades late in the season. So have the coaches and players, which is why focusing on improving in that regard has been a critical point of emphasis over the past two months.
Yesterday after practice, right tackle Mike McGlinchey offered his thoughts on how his coaches and teammates have approached that issue.
“I think just the understanding of what techniques we’re trying to apply on which plays, which looks, which leverages. Just kind of homing in on that. We had a pretty good grasp of all that before, and like I said earlier, we’ve done it a long time together,” stated McGlinchey.
“Switching a couple of the techniques in and out depending on the scheme or the play or whatever it is, I think we’ve done a good job. It’s been a great camp. Our group is ready to go, and I’m excited to see where we can go as the season unfolds,” he added.
With one of the league’s toughest schedules, it will be important for the Broncos’ offensive line and rushing attack to hit the ground running. The Broncos are optimistic J.K. Dobbins can stay healthy and show the flashes he did during the first part of last season. Additionally, second-year player RJ Harvey is poised for an increased role with the offense. He was a dynamic player as a receiver out of the backfield, but struggled on occasion with his vision and hitting the right lane.
To bolster their ground game, the Broncos added Washington Huskies standout Jonah Coleman in the fourth round of the 2026 NFL Draft. He was one of the best collegiate backs in this year’s class in yard per carry average, yards after contact, and touchdowns. He sports elite vision with top-end contact balance which make him tough to bring down. His addition to the squad gives Denver the deepest trio of backs they have had in a long time.
Over the next two weeks, McGlinchey and his offensive line counterparts will be locked alongside the coaching staff to develop the best gameplan possible to go up against Steve Spagnoulu’s defense.
“I think it’s an incredible opportunity we have for the next three days to go and compete against each other for a couple more times here, home in on some of the small details, kind of the introductions to what we want to do in the gameplan against Kansas City and then hit the ground running,” remarked McGlinchey.
In their first outing last season, the team had 21 carries for just 59 yards—a lowly 2.8 yard per carry average. In the second meeting, Denver was able to carve out 128 yards on the ground and averaged 4 yards per carry. While the Broncos did much better the second time around, they still leave a lot of yards on the field and can be better. McGlinchey knows that and is confident the team can take care of business on Monday Night Football. Moreover, stressed the importance of getting better as the season progresses.
“You want to be your best on Week 1, but it’s more important to be your best in Week 18. Every single week, you have to be better than the week before. It’s not going to be perfect when we first go out and start, but it’s about continuing to improve on each rep and each game as the season unfolds,” the ninth-year veteran added.
