Broncos Player Profile Quinn Meinerz 77
The Denver Broncos had a few years where the offensive line as a unit struggled to Matt Beaty Jersey put it together. The Broncos struggled at almost every spot on their line and needed to overhaul the unit. One of the pieces Denver added to help the overhaul was Quinn Meinerz, who came from a small school, and many thought would take some time to marinate.However, Meinerz stood out almost immediately when he took the field as a rookie last season and is now projected to be the starter at right guard. Looking over his career, you cannot help but root for the kid.Meinerz was 22 years old when he was drafted and turned 23 in November. In high school, he was an honorable mention All-State as an offensive and defensive lineman. He had some offers from Division III schools and chose Wisconsin-Whitewater.Meinerz only played in two games as a freshman, but he quickly got the starting job as a sophomore. Over the following two years, he stood out and dominated the competition he played against. He caught the attention of those at the Senior Bowl with how he played and kept the attention despite his 2020 season being canceled.It didn't take long for Meinerz to stand out while at the Senior Bowl. His belly, later called the Edwin Rios Jersey 'Belly of the Beast,' helped him catch the eyes of many fans. Of course, his play helped as he was physical and athletic on the field.Getting some reps as the center helped Meinerz at the Senior Bowl. There was a concern he would be a guard-only prospect as his height would keep him from being considered a tackle in the NFL.Meinerz was one of the excellent showings at the Combine as well. He tested at or above the 65th percentile in every test. The only aspect of the Combine that wasn't at or above was his height, where he came in barely under 6-foot-3, which was the 23rd percentile. His relative athletic score was an almost perfect 9.98 out of 10.0.The Broncos, after trading down a couple of times, selected Meinerz with the 99th overall pick Trea Turner Jersey in the third round of the 2021 NFL draft.The expectation was that Meinerz would compete with Lloyd Cushenberry III for the starting center job, and that is where he got most of his action in training camp and preseason. However, it was easy to notice that Meinerz had a long way to go before he was ready to be the starting center, and Cushenberry won the job.Scroll to ContinueNot long into the season, Meinerz got his chance to show what he could do as a guard. Due to some injuries to Graham Glasgow and Dalton Risner, Meinerz took the field in the Week 3 matchup against the New York Jets and started the following week against the Baltimore Ravens.Both opponents had some good talent on their defensive line, and they were going to challenge the rookie offensive lineman, but Meinerz held his own. While he made some rookie mistakes, he still looked like he was a fit on an NFL team as a starter. Bobby Miller Jersey After that, he was back to being a depth piece for a few weeks before injuries struck again.Meinerz played in the final nine games and started the last eight after Glasgow went down with a severe leg injury. It didn't take long for Meinerz to make it clear that the right guard was the perfect spot for him, and his play as a run blocker was fantastic, though there were still inconsistencies and rookie mistakes, which were expected.Meinerz was good enough to be projected as the starting right guard for the 2022 season.Expectations are high for Meinerz as he enters the second year of his career. He is an intelligent football player, so there hopefully Clayton Kershaw Jersey aren't any i sues picking up the new offense that he should do quite well playing in.Also, having a quarterback like Ru sell Wilson behind him can help Meinerz with some i sues he has in pa s protection, along with having some experience and technical improvements.This year, big things are expected from Meinerz, and he should help lock down the right guard spot and continue to be a tremendous help in the running game. He is one of the two players on the offensive line that are e sentially cemented as the starters at their position, along with Garett Bolles.
