Broncos OT Mike McGlinchey Talks 'No Fear' QB Bo Nix & Building a Winning Culture

Denver Broncos right tackle Mike McGlinchey had much to say about Bo Nix and building a winning culture.

Aug 11, 2024; Indianapolis, Indiana, USA; Denver Broncos quarterback Bo Nix (10) points during the second quarter against the Indianapolis Colts at Lucas Oil Stadium. / Marc Lebryk-USA TODAY Sports

Denver Broncos offensive tackle Mike McGlinchey enters his second year with the club, after joinging as a free agent in 2023. The Broncos haven't made the playoffs since 2015, but McGlinchey has been part of a winning program during his time in San Francisco, and he knows what it takes to build such a culture.

Central to a winning NFL program is the quarterback position. The Broncos hope they've found their foundational quarterback to build around in rookie first-rounder Bo Nix, who's coming off an impressive debut peformance in preseason Game 1.

On Wednesday, McGlinchey waxed lyrical about Nix and his confidence and poise for a rookie.

“He’s going to keep building on that and that confidence too," McGlinchey said of Nix. "And I said it the other day—he’s got a very unique combination of humility and confidence that goes a long way for his position and certainly as a rookie, he is stepping in here with a lot of pressure on himself and he’s taken that with stride and there’s no fear of competition. There’s no fear of getting out there and going for it, and that certainly has showed with the way he has progressed all camp.”

The Broncos will be relying on the youth of the roster this year, as the team had to part ways with many tenured veterans this past offseason in order to shoulder the burden of Russell Wilson's albatross of a contract that included an NFL-record $85 million in dead-money charges to the salary cap. Rookie wide receiver Devaughn Vele is a young player the Broncos could come to rely on much more than perhaps would be expected of a seventh-round draft pick.

"I haven’t seen it too often but he’s certainly come in here and not acted like a rookie, but he’s acted probably closer to his age," McGlinchey said of Vele. "He’s done a great job for us and he’s stepped up in a lot of ways and he’s making plays all over the field and we’re very, very excited for him.”

The Broncos had a type in the 2024 draft, and it might not be a bad thing to lean a little bit more on their older rookies. Nix is 24 years old, for example, while Vele will turn 27 later this year. Their life experience and maturity bode well in building the right locker room culture. Hopefully, that maturity will help Denver avoid some of the documented struggles of past rookie classes clashing with veteran groups.

McGlinchey would go on to emphasize continuity, but the right additions also reinforce and further any culture that is built. When new additions foster belief, it's infectious. In McGlinchey's estimation, that's crucial to building a winning program.

“I think there’s certainly an internal belief—more than was when I got here a year ago," McGlinchey said. "There’s people (who) believe that we can win, people believe that we’re on the right track, people have brought into the program and I think that’s the biggest key: is the continuity of year-to-year and how this thing keeps building as you add and subtract players, as you add and subtract coaches.” 

Certainly, it follows that the Broncos should be more comfortable in what they're being expected to execute within the scheme on both sides of the ball. The changes to Sean Payton's coaching staff, with the hiring of Jim Leonhard as a defensive pass game coordinator and Pete Carmichael as a senior offensive assistant, will change some aspects of what the Broncos do.

But the Broncos have mostly done well maintaining coaching continuity in Year 2 of the Payton regime. McGlinchey and his fellow offensive linemen having a second straight year with Zach Strief as the position coach will "go a long way."

“It’s been a great deal for us to be able to learn the little nuances of what’s going on here obviously VJ’s [defensive coordinator Vance Joseph] stuff on the other side of the ball, and Sean and Joe and their stuff of our side of the ball—that extra year allows the development and the skill development to gain that confidence to keep moving forward and I think we all talked about last year—learning how to win is also learning how to stop beating yourself and I think with the experience of another year of doing this all together. I think that’s going to help us go a long way.”

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Jul 26, 2024; Englewood, CO, USA; Denver Broncos offensive tackle Mike McGlinchey (69) and guard Ben Powers (74) and guard Quinn Meinerz (77) during training camp at Broncos Park Powered by CommonSpirit. / Isaiah J. Downing-USA TODAY Sports

For a team, belief also works in interesting ways. Confidence within the scheme provides confidence that the Broncos can execute in particular situations. In a sense, not having to overthink situations because they know what they need to do in the situation with the extra experience.

Indeed, over the past decade, the Broncos have displayed one of the hallmarks of a bad team that has forgotten how to win: coaching instability. Over the past few years, the Broncos have found new ways to lose.

Building that winning culture needs to come from within. The Broncos must translate execution on the practice field into real-game situations and results when it matters in the regular season. McGlinchey highlighted where the Broncos showed that type of consistency after digging themselves out of a 1-5 start.

“It gradually builds. I think certainly—it definitely materialized a lot last year. The winning streak that we went on and being a game or two away from the playoffs and being able to do that with the positive that we put ourselves in the six weeks to start the season last year definitely goes a long way because we went a full 180 there, and the way in which we finished that season and the things that we did well we built on and the things that we didn’t do well we identified and that rolls over into the spring. And into the spring, you gain confidence moving forward to the fall, and certainly, that’s what all camp’s about—just building that confidence going forward to a long 18-week season, so I think we’re on the right track. We’re not all the way there yet but that’s why we’ve got to keep learning.” 

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Any self-respecting offensive lineman wants to win the line-of-scrimmage battle, establish the run, and keep the quarterback clean. Of course, McGlinchey is no different.

Payton has revealed his Bill 'Parcellian' belief that the offensive line is the first cornerstone to be laid in a winning team's foundation. McGlinchey wants the offensive line to be the reason why the Broncos win football games when it counts, emphasizing the continuity at four starting positions despite the change at center, as well as the scheme and position coach. 

“We’ve played a lot of football together and we certainly have guys that are very experienced as we’ve continued to go through this and I think our talent level is really high—it’s just that matter of continuing to work together to believe and certainly take control of this football team," McGlinchey said. "I think that’s something we believe in, upstairs believes in (coaching staff) and that a culture and team should permeate through the offensive line. And we take a lot of pride in that."

Every collective accomplishment starts at the individual level, and builds cohesively from there.

“It starts with your individual job first and you’ve got to be the best at what you do and confident in what you do do, like every other position," McGlinchey said. "You just keep growing with the reps and that confidence comes... We’ve had a lot of success together and we’re going to hopefully continue to build on that.”

It's still early in the process. And it's always difficult to draw too much from a preseason opener, but it was apparent that it was part of the Broncos' game plan to establish the run early, totaling 38 rushing attempts against the Indianapolis Colts, even if it came at the expense of rushing efficiency.

Being able to get three short-yardage rushing touchdowns against the Colts was a boon to a Broncos offense that lacked rushing touchdowns last year and gives hope that the team will commit more to the run game around the quarterback, whether it's Bo Nix or Jarrett Stidham. It plays to the strength of the offensive line, with guards Ben Powers, Quinn Meinerz, and McGlinchey grading better in run-blocking situations.

Too often, the Broncos abandoned the run game due to various factors, but the game situation was a key part of that. Keeping the offense on-schedule will be the biggest help to the Broncos’ starting quarterback.

McGlinchey was full of praise for the Broncos running backs as well.

“We’ve a lot of talented running backs and I think our running game is going to do a lot of great things for us," McGlinchey said. "And certainly, that’s something that we want to  be able to rely on and certainly something that should be a calling card is short yardage rushing touchdowns and hope that continues and that trend continues to skyrocket here.”

Another aspect unmentioned by McGlinchey directly was the physicality of the blocking on the perimeter. Physicality is not optional. Payton has had another year to establish the Broncos more firmly in his image.

While the O-line should continue to be a strength, for the Broncos' running game to become even more of a factor, they need to create more success blocking the perimeter. In wideouts Courtland Sutton, Tim Patrick, and even Vele (who was noted for his physical blocking at Utah), that identity should be able to permeate and turn it into a real strength for the Broncos moving forward. 

It is early days indeed, but the Broncos are hoping that they found the recipe for the coveted winning culture. Hopefully, Denver will continue the momentum into the preseason game against the Green Bay Packers and beyond. 

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