John Elway heavily invested in the Denver Broncos’ offensive line his final few years as general manager.
Garett Bolles, Graham Glasgow and Ja’Wuan James are all among the highest-paid players in the NFL at their respective positions along the line, while Dalton Risner and Lloyd Cushenberry were both Day 2 picks.
But that doesn’t mean George Paton will stay put with Denver’s offensive line as it’s currently constructed, especially with major questions at right tackle.
Here’s how the Broncos could look to upgrade their offensive line in the draft.
Special thanks to Andre Simone for providing draft input.
Current players on the roster
Starters: Garett Bolles, Dalton Risner, Lloyd Cushenberry, Graham Glasgow, Ja’Wuan James
Depth: Netane Muti, Calvin Anderson, Patrick Morris, Austin Schlottmann, Jon Halapio, Quinn Bailey
Level of need entering the draft: Not pressing
Strength of position in draft: Very strong — deep and talented
Round(s) targeted: Wide open
Top players in the draft: Penei Sewell (Oregon), Rashawn Slater (Northwestern), Christian Darrisaw (Virginia Tech)
Since Denver made Ja’Wuan James the highest-paid right tackle in NFL history in 2019, he’s played in 63 total snaps on offense — 63. If James can’t be counted on in 2021, the Broncos have a massive hole at right tackle. If, however, James plays all 16 games — which he’s done twice, most recently in 2016 — Denver only needs to address depth along their offensive line.
Of course, and unfortunately, Paton and Co. won’t know James’ availability until after the season, making it very tricky for how the Broncos should address the major unknown at right tackle entering the draft.
On Thursday, in his pre-draft press conference, Paton stated he expects James to be Denver’s starting right tackle, while acknowledging depth on the line needs to be addressed.
“I like the draft at guard and tackle,” Paton said on Thursday. “I think you’ll be able to get a good offensive lineman in the first three rounds, maybe even four through six. I think our offensive line is — if you had to rank them in the league they’re in the top third. We just need to add depth. We need to add competition. And I think we’ll do that.”
After letting Elijah Wilkinson and Demar Dotson — two of their starting right tackles in 2020 — walk in free agency, Denver will be searching for at least depth at tackle in the draft. Since Denver has one of the best offensive line coaches the NFL has ever seen in Mike Munchak, the Broncos can select a developmental tackle on Day 2 or Day 3 in hopes that James plays in 2021 and the draft prospect develops to take over in a year or two.
It’s also quite possible Paton goes big and solidifies his anchors on the line for the next few years by investing in a first-round tackle. A year ago, it seemed unfathomable that Penei Sewell would drop out of the top five. But with an expected run on quarterbacks, it’s not out of the realm of possibility Oregon’s stud offensive lineman is there for the Broncos at No. 9.
Additionally, Rashawn Slater is now viewed as a potential top-15 pick and could even be drafted before Sewell. Either of those tackles would instantly be Day 1 starters even with James set to have a $13 million cap hit with an additional $1 million in dead money if the Broncos were to move on from him. With a potential investment like this at right tackle, all of the uncertainty that exists now with James would vanish.
After Wilkinson and Dotson’s departure, Calvin Anderson is Denver’s backup swing tackle. While he’s young and can continue to improve under Munchak, it would be a tall task to ask him to fill in a majority of the season with only two career starts under his belt entering 2021.
Along the interior of the offensive line, while there certainly are questions about if Cushenberry will continue to progress and hold onto the starting center job, there’s already a built in replacement plan.
While Cushenberry continued to improve throughout his rookie season, Vic Fangio admitted Graham Glasgow was prepared to slide inside to center if needed. If that were to happen this upcoming year, second-year talent Netane Muti would take Glasgow’s spot at right guard.
After staying healthy for his entire rookie season and impressing in his only start of the season against the Panthers, Muti’s high upside could be enough to force a move like this during the season. Thanks to Glasgow’s versatility and Muti’s talent, the Broncos don’t need to address the interior of the offensive line in the draft.
However, it’s a completely different story with right tackle.
When it comes to the offensive line during the draft, all eyes will be on Paton’s plan on the right side of the line.
