This can have lots of information, so in case you don’t wish to have a look at and take into consideration numbers, simply skip to the conclusions on the finish.
For individuals who are unaware, the one positions that play ever offensive snap (by design) are the OL and the QB. So in a perfect scenario, all 5 beginning offensive lineman and the QB play 100% of the offensive snaps. On good (or actually unhealthy) and wholesome groups, this may generally be lower than 100% if the starters are eliminated late in a blowout video games to present the backups some recreation expertise.
The offensive line can be distinctive in that familiarity with the blokes enjoying with you on the road is crucial to efficiency. That being stated, it’s uncommon for a workforce to have the identical main starters in any respect 5 spots on the OL for 2 consecutive seasons (extra on this later).
During the last 11 seasons (2015-2025) roughly 316 NFL offensive lineman have performed a snap in an everyday season recreation. The fewest was 292 in 2019 and essentially the most was 348 in 2021. I used to be in a position to scrape the offensive snap quantity for each lineman each season on this examine after which I used to be in a position to convert that to a % of complete offensive workforce snaps for that season. This information is from SISdatahub.com. There have been 19 offensive linemen in 2025 that performed each snap on offense for his or her workforce. Due to accidents and blowouts, Mike McGlinchey had the very best share for the Bronco OL at 1067. The workforce ran 1092 offensive performs which was the fifth most within the NFL in 2025. So MM performed 97.7% of the attainable snaps for us in 2025.
There have been 68 OL guys who performed 90% or extra of their workforce snaps in 2025. This was one of many lowest complete values throughout the time. The bottom, 66, was in 2023. So I made a decision to determine a approach to make use of the numbers to check OL well being throughout the league. I got here up with a method that makes use of the variety of guys who performed >90% (occasions 3.5), plus the variety of guys who performed >80%, minus the variety of guys with >20%, and minus the blokes who performed >0% (divided by 2.5). On this approach the >80% and the >20% cancel out one another making the worth very closely weighted by the >90% quantity. The method was designed to get zero for a mean season, constructive for a “healthy” season, and unfavorable for an “injured” season.
In case you use this for the eleven seasons you see that in 4 of 5 years 2015-2019, the league had pretty wholesome OLs aside from 2017. The common was 31.6. The common for the final six seasons was -6.8 and the pattern is downward. This might be a results of groups utilizing a sixth offensive lineman extra, however I doubt it since which have been pretty steady.
Now this doesn’t have a look at gamers who received damage earlier than the common season began that have been projected to be starters. Most groups don’t have the identical beginning offensive from yr to yr. In truth there have been solely seven situations during the last six seasons the place a workforce had the very same beginning offensive line for 2 consecutive years. Starters outlined as guys who began eight or extra video games.
2020-2025 there are 25 attainable spots per workforce for an OL man to be the identical from yr to yr. The Broncos had 14 out of a attainable 25 which was first rate, however not nice.
2020-20212021-20222022-20232023-20242024-2025
The Broncos information is beneath with Bolles holding (no pun supposed) down the LT spot for all six seasons. No different spot has been as steady on the Bronco OL. RG has been the subsequent greatest with solely 2021-2022 breaking the streak for the Broncos at RG. The least steady (no shock) for the Bronco has been RT with the Broncos having a unique starter at RT each season from 2020 to 2023 after we signed MM after the season. Be aware that that 2021 column is 2020-2021. As you’ll be able to see, the Broncos didn’t have the identical beginning line in any of the consecutive years. They did have 4 out of 5 in three of 5 although.
The beginning RT (larger than 8 GS) for the Broncos in 2020 was DeMar Dotson, in 2021 it was Calvin Anderson, and in 2022 it was Billy Turner. RT has been an issue for the Broncos within the final decade. MM has solidified that spot and it has led to enchancment within the offense total.
The 2 groups with the least OL continuity are the Bears and the Raiders throughout this time. They solely have eight slots of a attainable 25 that have been steady over two consecutive seasons (see within the NFL desk above).
I don’t have a very good clarification for the dropoff in OL well being during the last six seasons. It might be a operate of the elite OL guys simply getting older (and extra harm susceptible) with out a wave of youthful guys to step in a fill their sneakers.
or in case you want beneath is the general OL well being rating by workforce by season
You possibly can see that by my method, the Broncos had their healthiest OL in 2023 once they had an OL well being worth of 10.8 which was one of many highest values that season – solely the Payments and the Bengals had more healthy OLs that season. The best attainable rating if all 5 starters play each offensive snap is 15.5. The 2019 Colts got here the closest to that. That they had 5 offensive lineman who performed >90% and solely seven offensive lineman performed any snaps on offense. No workforce has had on OL the place fewer than seven guys performed throughout the season on offense throughout this timeframe, however there are at most two such groups in any of those seasons, whereas some seasons the place the minimal is eight.
The workforce with the least wholesome OL throughout this time interval have been the 2022 Rams with a rating of -13.0. The Rams had just one OL man who performed >80% or >90%, the had 11 who performed >20% and 15 who performed any snaps on offense. Fifteen is essentially the most offensive lineman used on offense by any workforce throughout this timeframe.
The 2023 Broncos had 4 OL guys who performed 90% or extra and 5 who performed 80% or extra. Additionally the Broncos solely used eight offensive lineman that season (who performed any offensive snaps).
Garrett Bolles – 999 snaps – 98percentBen Powers – 999 snaps – 98percentLloyd Cushenberry – 996 snaps – 98percentQuinn Meinerz – 969 snaps – 95percentMike McGlinchey – 884 snaps – 87%
Cameron Fleming, Quinn Bailey and Luke Wattenberg mixed for 214 offensive snaps that season and lots of of Baileys 66 have been because the sixth offensive lineman.
The projected beginning lineup for the Broncos on the OL is identical because it was on the finish of the 2025 season.
Bolles – Meinerz – Wattenberg – Powers – McGlinchey
All it takes is one vital harm to vary one of many beginning spots for 2026. Coming into 2025, we anticipated Ben Powers to be the starter at guard, however his harm meant that Alex Palczewski (10 GS) began extra recreation for the 2025 Broncos than BP did (6 GS). The entrance workplace might determine to maneuver on from Powers for cap causes, which might probably imply AP beginning at guard.
GB is 34. QM can be 28. LW can be 29. BP can be 30 and MM can be 32. With out doing a bunch of analysis on the topic I’d guess that is without doubt one of the oldest beginning offensive strains within the NFL. They may have a mean age of 30 years outdated. Though age shouldn’t be a predictor of harm, there’s a sturdy correlation with older gamers getting damage extra usually than youthful gamers.
Fortunately the Broncos have two gamers who’ve proven that they’re competent starters if they’re wanted in Alex Palczweski and Alex Forsyth. I even have excessive hopes for Frank Crum creating right into a serviceable swing sort out if not a starter. Kage Casey additionally has me optimistic since for the primary time in nearly a decade the Broncos really drafted an offensive sort out.
Offensive strains within the NFL have grow to be much less wholesome during the last 5 or 6 seasons for some purpose. I did some evaluation on correlation between OL well being and offensive efficiency, however all correlations are pretty weak. The correlation between OL well being an stress charge allowed was 15% and the correlation between common yards earlier than contact per rush (a sign of OL run blocking proficiency) was 17%. This could recommend that stress allowed and common YBC/run are extra tied to the QB and the RB respectively.
If there’s curiosity I can observe up in a while this month with a have a look at how younger offensive linemen have developed (or not developed) after they enter the league. Let me know within the feedback if you wish to examine that.
