ENGLEWOOD, Colorado: Even though the Denver Broncos 2024 season has only lasted six games, one thing is already clear: their offensive line won’t have the same luck with injuries as it did the previous season.
After ranking in the top 10 in the NFL for both run-block and pass-block victory rates last season, the unit proved to be among the finest in the league. The Broncos had the same starting lineup the whole season, save for Mike McGlinchey’s absence from the regular-season finale, which helped their cause of good health.
With all of the injuries from the previous season, it was impressive that a starter only missed one man-game in 17 games. In the same way that having ten different starting offensive line combinations in 2022 was a negative, it was also an outlier in the positive extreme.
The starting offensive line will have lost six man-games by Sunday, and that total does not include Quinn Bailey, a swing backup who broke his ankle during training camp, terminating his season. And with right tackle Alex Palczweski and center Luke Wattenberg both sidelined with ankle ailments in Week 6, the Broncos will open with a third different lineup.
Enter Alex Forsyth and Matt Peart. Forsyth has never started before; Peart made seven starts working at both tackle spots and saw offensive snaps in 34 games over four seasons with the New York Giants to open his career.
They arrive in their opportunities from different spots, but the Broncos have high hopes for both.
Despite losing the battle at the Broncos OTAs and training camp, Forsyth was prepared.
Throughout the offseason and into the start of training camp, Alex Forsyth shared a three-way split of playing time at center. Even though he finished second in the scrum against Wattenberg and Sam Mustipher, he was able to practice with guards Ben Powers and Quinn Meinerz, which is currently very helpful. When Forsyth replaced Wattenberg last week, he didn’t start at zero.
As Forsyth put it, “I thought it went okay.” “All I tried to do was remain locked in and wait for my number to be called.” However, I believe everything went well. There are things to tidy up after every play, but nobody will play flawlessly.
Forsyth is expected to improve as he settles in, though, after spending his whole rookie season as a game-day inactive. Additionally, he anticipates that he will keep getting better at combo blocks, which are an essential part of the task because it requires teamwork up front.
“It’s tough when you’re during camp to rotating and stuff, working with different guys because different guys fit combinations different ways,” Forysth said. “I think just continue working on that. Every single week has been something that I’ve tried to get better at, and I feel like I’ve seen some improvement.”
THERE’S A VISION FOR PEART
Peart’s four seasons with the New York Giants didn’t go as hoped. He made seven starts in those years, but served as a reserve for most of that time, and the promise of his strength and length on a 6-foot-7, 318-pound didn’t materialize into becoming a consistent starter.
The Broncos — and offensive line coach Zach Strief — offered him a chance to start over.
“Honestly, he kind of just broke down everything and kind of rebuilt me back from the basics,” Peart said. “He says, ‘I hear you have really good tangible skills,’ and he just kind of took that and just kind of molded them into how he wants it to fit his technique and scheme.”
Strief made the vision clear in the phone call he had with Peart during the process of trying to sign him.
“He as kind of going over his philosophy and his plan and everything,” Peart said. “And honestly, I don’t even know how long the phone call [was], I just felt like it was like 20-30 minutes. Kind of like one of those things where I was like, ‘Yeah, I really believe in what this guy’s philosophy is.”
That’s not to say Peart views his time with the Giants as a lost four years en route to NFL success.
“My time at the Giants, I wouldn’t trade for anything,” Peart said. “It’s just going through the highs and lows of everything there, it’s my testament to them because, I mean, they’re the people that took a chance on me.
“And coming here, it was just trying to take what I’ve learned from there, and just grow from it … When I came here and I was talking to Strief, it was just understanding [that] how he approaches the game, it’s just a different approach. And honestly, it’s just awesome to be able to have that different approach when you come to a game that we all love.
“… Having that being in Year Five and still having the ability to learn so much more of the game that we all love to play, it’s awesome.”
All that from one phone call.
“It was just kind of crazy. ‘Cause it was just a phone call,” Peart said. “I didn’t even hit the field, and it’s like I truly, truly just wanted to get my feet on the ground to work.”
Over six months of breaking down and building later, Peart is ready for his second chance.
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