Broncos Lose Starting RG Quinn Meinerz to 4-Week Hamstring

The Denver Broncos did not make it out of Seattle unscathed by the injury bug.

The Denver Broncos' rushing attack got off to a productive start in Monday night's 17-16 loss to the Seattle Seahawks. Broncos running back Javonte Williams averaged north of eight yards per carry in the first half. 

Suddenly, the right side of Denver's offensive line struggled to get any push on the ground and perhaps a big reason for it was the loss of starting right guard Quinn Meinerz. Meinerz exited the game after playing 18 snaps with a hamstring injury.

On Tuesday, 9NEWS' Mike Klis provided an update on Meinerz's injury and his outlook to return to the lineup. 

"MRI exam revealed RG Quinn Meinerz will miss a few weeks (about 4) with hamstring injury per source," Klis tweeted. 

MRI exam revealed RG Quinn Meinerz will miss a few weeks (about 4) with hamstring injury per source. #9sports

— Mike Klis (@mikeklis) September 13, 2022

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Meinerz was Denver's third-round draft pick last year. Hailing from the small-school Wisconsin-Whitewater, he's been primed for a breakout Year 2 after winning the starting right guard job this summer. 

In Meinerz's place, the Broncos played veteran Graham Glasgow on Monday night, and fans should expect that to continue. Glasgow is coming off a serious injury himself after missing most of last season. 

He renegotiated his contract his past offseason, accepting a pay-cut in order to stick around. The Broncos were fortunate to get him back at a reduced salary, but they'll need better play from Glasgow than he provided in relief of Meinerz in Seattle. 

Still, despite playing from behind the entire game, the Broncos finished with 103 yards on the ground, led by Melvin Gordon's 58 yards on 12 carries. Williams chipped in 43 yards on seven carries. 

The Broncos' O-line, and the game's result, would have fared much better had both backs not lost a fumble on two separate 4th-&-Goal carries from the goal-line. Gordon fumbled one and Williams another — the first time that had happened in the same game since 1987 (two backs losing a fumble on the goal-line in same contest). 

While losing Meinerz for a month is bad news, the upside is that Glasgow is a veteran and probably just needs to get his game legs beneath him. Working with the first-team in practice this week will hopefully avail Glasgow and put this Broncos offense back on track when the Houston Texans arrive for a Week 2 tilt in Denver. 

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