In a testament to exactly how well put together the Denver Broncos are on the offensive line, as NFL All-Pro offensive tackle Garett Bolles and NFL All-Pro guard Quinn Meinerz have stolen all the headlines the last 2 years, right offensive tackle Mike McGlinchey has become 1 of the NFL’s elite players at his position in relative anonymity.
The Athletic’s Nick Kosmider put the 6-foot-8, 315-pound McGlinchey on his list of the Top 10 Most Important Broncos in 2026 after a season in which Pro Football Focus graded him out at 76.9 overall for the season — 19th out of 89 eligible right offensive tackles.
“Late last season, McGlinchey said he has become a ‘worlds better’ player since he began playing under assistant Zach Strief in 2023 — and the numbers back it up,” Kosmider wrote on July 24. “He was charged with only two sacks allowed in 2025, his lowest total in a full season since his rookie year with the San Francisco 49ers in 2018. He changed his footwork upon arriving in Denver, and that required an adjustment period. He likened it to a golfer changing his swing in the middle of his career, but his comfort level with the technique has grown across the past three seasons. McGlinchey has missed only five games since 2023, including none last season, and his presence is critical in Denver’s quest to become a more bruising rushing attack this season.”
McGlinchey on Pace to Crack $100M Career Earnings
Another thing you might not know about McGlinchey, as Bolles and Meinerz have become media darlings, is that he’s just about as rich as anyone on the Broncos.
McGlinchey signed a 5-year, $87.5 million free-agent contract with the Broncos before the 2023 season that will bring his career earnings to approximately $117 million when it runs out following the 2027 season.
After earning All-American honors at Notre Dame in 2017, McGlinchey was a 1st-round pick (No. 9 overall) by the San Francisco 49ers in the 2018 NFL draft. He has 115 starts in 115 career games — he’s also only missed 5 games in the last 4 seasons after missing 8 games due to a torn quadriceps tendon in 2022.
He’ll be just 33 years old when his current contract runs out, which means if McGlinchey stays healthy, he could be set up for another massive payday when his current contract runs out.
Broncos Haven’t Had 1,000-Yard Rusher Since 2019
For as high regard as the Broncos’ offensive line is held in NFL circles, there’s 1 statistic that jumps out that seems to fly directly in the face of that — Denver hasn’t had a 1,000-yard rusher since Phillip Lindsay in 2019.
The Broncos have 2 wide receivers who seem like they have a very good chance of both having 1,000 receiving yards in Jaylen Waddle and Courtland Sutton, but that’s no guarantee of success. Four NFL teams had 1,000-yard receiving duos in 2025, but only 1 of them made the playoffs — the Philadelphia Eagles — and they were knocked out in the NFC Wild Card Round.
The real key for the Broncos will be running the ball. Veteran running back J.K. Dobbins was on track for a 1,000-yard rushing season before he suffered a season-ending foot injury in Week 10, and is back and healthy. The Broncos have also drafted running backs in the last 2 years who both had 1,000-yard rushing seasons in college — 2025 2nd-round pick RJ Harvey and 2026 4th-round pick Jonah Coleman.
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