Quinn Meinerz signing another sign of O-line’s prime spot in Payton’s place

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — Quinn Meinerz couldn’t have foreseen the path that he would take to becoming the highest-paid guard in Denver Broncos history.

Not when he spent the 2020 season sitting out. As a Division III player during that COVID-19-wrecked year, he couldn’t play. D-III elected to punt its season to the following spring; by that time, Meinerz’s name was in the NFL Draft pool. And thanks to a Senior Bowl week that was the stuff of urban legend, his name was becoming ever more familiar with each passing week.

Still, that ascent to stardom seemed unfathomable just months earlier, when he was looking for places to keep working. Sometimes it involved channeling his inner Paul Bunyan. At others it necessitated a trip to the “grit dungeon” — in his father’s basement.

“I moved back in with my dad and used his weight room in the basement,” Meinerz recalled. “They nicknamed it the grit dungeon, and it’s a dark, unfinished basement with just a rack in there. And I was teaching myself center in his backyard and doing what I could during the time to make sure I was still improving.”

It helped that he had people who believed in him — not just his father, who later would deliver 70-pound loads of ground beef to him in the parking lot of a Best Buy — but his now-wife, his agent and his father. Meinerz pointed to them when he spoke at length Tuesday about his four-year extension.

The Broncos' $80-million man, guard Quinn Meinerz. is grateful to the support and belief in him from his wife, his dad, and his agent.

Of his wife, he said, "She's always supported this entire dream. I would say at times she believed in me more than I believed in myself." pic.twitter.com/kHX7G7A4I0

— Andrew Mason (@MaseDenver) July 24, 2024

“She’s always supported this entire dream,” Meinerz said. “I would say at times she believed in me more than I believed in myself.

“There was also a point during COVID where I asked her if I could bring a little weight set into her apartment when I moved in with her. And so I had a barbell and some 45-pound plates, and I was doing some lifts in her apartment.”

With the NFL just a dream to which Meinerz committed all of his time, money was tight.

“I didn’t have a ton of money. I wasn’t really working,” he said.

Enter the food-delivery service.

“And so, then he was just like, ‘Hey, let me know when you run out,’ because that’s all I was eating was rice and ground beef for every single meal,” Meinerz said.

A few months later, Meinerz was a Broncos draft pick. And now, the guy who relied on the kindness of those closest to possesses has life-changing — and, with good financial management, generational — wealth.

When he came to Denver, the Broncos were in Year Three with Vic Fangio. And while Fangio had his attributes, he was defensive-minded.

Sean Payton, meanwhile, is an offense-first coach. And in particular — an offensive-line-first coach.

“I think it is the most important position group on your roster,” he said. “I think it permeates your building. I believe that and it has served us well everywhere I have been.”

And at three of the five positions on the offensive line, he’s doled out massive contracts.

BUT BEYOND QUINN MEINERZ, EVEN THE BRONCOS HAVE THEIR LIMITS

And some of them are dictated by the situation in which the team finds itself as it navigates a league-high dead-cap figure of over $67 million. The Broncos were interested in re-signing Lloyd Cushenberry in free agency in March, but the price tag spiked. So, now they’re looking for the next Cushenberry.

That could be third-year veteran Luke Wattenberg.

“What’s been kind of interesting with Luke is that Luke has some of the attributes that were really good in Lloyd,” Broncos offensive-line coach Zach Strief said during minicamp. “For a center, he has a lot of length. He can become a very adept pass protector.

“And so, what was great last year is the the real transition for Lloyd was using that length effectively as a player. And while you’re coaching Lloyd, you have Luke standing behind him. So, I think what we seen out of Luke so far is a player who has a lot of length and can use it. You know, that’s a position where you can create players that are true shutdown protectors. And Luke has all those attributes.”

Another move could involve Garett Bolles, whose contract expires. The deal that Payton inherited gives the Broncos four offensive linemen each with an average-per-year contract value in excess of $13 million. And for this year, Bolles’ $20-million cap figure leads the team — among players still with the organization.

If Bolles returns, his contract could look like that of Meinerz — although with fewer years on it, befitting his age; he’s 32 now. If not, the replacement might not have a significant cap figure, but a massive use of draft capital — assuming the Broncos look outside their ranks.

Either way, it would represent a continued heavy investment in the offensive line. It’s how Sean Payton has operated before. It’s how he’ll operate in the future.

This week, it was Quinn Meinerz’s turn. He likely won’t be the last to benefit from Payton’s line-first philosophy.