With the 98th-overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft, the Denver Broncos select… the most interesting man in the draft, Quinn Meinerz.

The tree-tackling man out of Wisconsin-Whitewater who proudly shows off his belly—or sometimes called “The Gut” or “Belly of the Beast”—instantly became a fan favorite the moment the Broncos selected him in the third round.

But after not having played football since 2019, what type of role will the 6-foot-3, 320-pound interior offensive lineman have his rookie year?

Projections for 2021: Compete for the starting center position and take the job if Lloyd Cushenberry struggles

It would be unreasonable to expect a 22-year old who hasn’t played football in almost two years from a Division III school to be a starter Week 1 of his rookie season. But it’s not unfathomable to imagine him winning the job.

After starting and dominating 29-straight games at left guard in 2018 and 2019, Meinerz’s college career abruptly ended as Wisconsin-Whitewater’s 2020 season was completely canceled due to COVID-19.

Thanks in part to being named a first-team Division III All-American in 2019, Meinerz was invited to the Senior Bowl leading up to the draft. With his belly hanging out, the Division III prospect dominated other highly-rated draft prospects in Mobile, Ala. That caught George Paton’s eye.

“When you see him in one-on-one drills blocking guys that are first-and second-round picks, it was pretty amazing,” Paton said about Meinerz’s performance at the Senior Bowl. “He has a lot of upside.”

Following Mike Munchak’s wishes, Meinerz will begin his NFL career at center, despite playing left guard in college.

“Those centers—unless you’re the starter—have to be able to play guard, too. He’ll start at center and Mike will manage it and determine when he gets him rolling at guard,” Fangio said, explaining where Meinerz will play. “We’ll cross-train him. We’ll start him off somewhere and let him get his feet wet—get grounded. But eventually, we need guys that can play center and guard. As your offseason develops and training camp goes on, you see and feel where those needs are, and if we have to get him to that second position quickly, we will.”

Fortunately for Meinerz, along with filming hype videos plowing through dead trees to show off his blocking skills, he spent 2020 learning the center position for this exact reason.

Now, Meinerz will try to plow his way to the top of the Broncos’ depth chart and potentially become the starting center at some point during his rookie season. Meinerz, however, will have an uphill battle as Lloyd Cushenberry started every game at center his rookie season in 2020. Additionally, during OTAs and minicamp, Cushenberry had the advantage over the rookie.

While Cushenberry improved as his rookie season went on—and Fangio applauded him for it countless times throughout the year—if he doesn’t continue to show improvement in training camp, Meinerz will have an opportunity to take the job from him. If that doesn’t happen by Week 1, Meinerz could take the starting job during the season if Cushenberry struggles.

As Meinerz proved at the Senior Bowl, he has the physical abilities to excel as both a pass blocker and run blocker. However, no position is more demanding from a mental standpoint on the offensive line than center. Learning that part of the position will be the most difficult task for the rookie.

With plenty of experience at guard from his time at Wisconsin-Whitewater, Meinerz shouldn’t have an issue sliding back over to guard if needed. At guard, however, Meinerz would be in a competition for the backup spot with promising second-year player Netane Muti.

Muti had an impressive NFL debut in his one start last year against the Carolina Panthers. Because of that, Meinerz’s best shot of seeing the field in 2021 will be at center.

Saying all of that, it wouldn’t be disappointing if Meinerz doesn’t see the field on offense as a rookie. Learning the center position is difficult. Transitioning from college to the NFL isn’t easy, to say the least. Jumping from Division III football to the NFL is incredibly difficult. Having almost two years off between real football games is nearly unheard of.

Putting all of that together is one heckuva task for a rookie.

Realistically, it’s fair to expect Meinerz to be ready to take a starting job in 2022. But it’s not out of the realm of possibility he steals a starting job at some point during his rookie season.