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Quinn Meinerz and Garett Bolles Are Powering the Broncos' Commitment to the Run Game
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- Quinn Meinerz and Garett Bolles Are Powering the Broncos' Commitment to the Run Game
Two games is too early to draw firm conclusions about most NFL teams. But the Denver Broncos have already shown what they want their offense to be in 2026, and it starts with Quinn Meinerz and Garett Bolles .
Denver ran the ball just 15 times for 61 yards in a 31-10 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 1. Against the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday, the Broncos ran it 28 times for 104 yards and rallied for a 20-13 win. Head coach Sean Payton made the reason plain after the game.
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"We're built up front and a little bit more under center. You know, you're constantly looking to find ways to take the quarterback off the high dive right?" Payton said, per Denver Sports' Joey Freeburg .
Two standouts, and three still catching up
Aug 1, 2026; Englewood, CO, USA; Denver Broncos 2025-2026 guard Quinn Meinerz (77) during training camp at Broncos Park. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images
Payton also credited his line directly. "But, those guys up front did a good job, and D Webb did a great job. We had good balance. It was a good win." Two of those guys are carrying most of the load. Meinerz has a 90.9 overall grade from Pro Football Focus, third among 69 guards, and his 90.8 run-blocking grade ranks second. He hasn't been flagged once in 111 snaps. Bolles has a 90.2 pass-blocking grade, the best on the line, and ESPN has him holding his block on 91 percent of his pass-blocking snaps, 10th among tackles.
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The rest of the line hasn't kept pace. Center Luke Wattenberg has a 38.3 pass-blocking grade and two penalties, left guard Ben Powers sits at 52.2 overall and right tackle Mike McGlinchey is at 50.4. That's a surprise for a group that returned all five starters . McGlinchey does have a case in the run game, where ESPN ranks him fifth among tackles in run block win rate at 85 percent. That helps explain why Denver ranks sixth in that metric, but 18th in pass block win rate.
It's only two games, and every starter on the line has logged roughly 110 snaps. But Week 2 showed where Payton is steering this offense, and the two players carrying it up front are the ones Denver can count on most. That gets tested Sunday night against the Los Angeles Rams in Week 3 . Kobie Turner leads all defensive tackles with a 54 percent run stop win rate, and the interior of Denver's line will see plenty of him.
This story was originally published by Athlon Sports on Sep 23, 2026, where it first appeared in the NFL section. Add Athlon Sports as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
