Tag: Mike McGlinchey

Broncos restructure Mike McGlinchey’s contract to save $11 million

The Broncos restructured right tackle Mike McGlinchey’s contract, a move that will save the team $11 million in salary cap space.

The Denver Broncos have restructured right tackle Mike McGlinchey’s contract to create an additional $11 million in salary cap space, ESPN’s Field Yates first reported on Friday evening.

The Broncos took $13.875 million of McGlinchey’s base salary and converted it into a signing bonus, according to Spotrac.com. That signing bonus will be prorated over the next five years. To save cap space in 2024, Denver will have $2.775 million cap hits on McGlinchey’s contract each year from now through 2028 (the restructure added one void year).

McGlinchey’s base salary has dropped down to $1.125 million, but he’s not taking a pay cut because the signing bonus is paid up front. So the right tackle gets paid immediately and the Broncos get more cap flexibility.

Denver also restructured the contract of wide receiver Tim Patrick, a move that saved $8.375 million in cap space. Additionally, the Broncos cut safety Justin Simmons (saving $14.5 million) as well as tight end Chris Manhertz (saving $2.12 million). Denver also agreed to trade receiver Jerry Jeudy to the Cleveland Browns (saving $12.987 million).

After a flurry of restructures and roster moves, the Broncos are estimated to be about $30.57 million under the salary cap ahead of NFL free agency.

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5-step plan for the Broncos to get under the salary cap (with $35 million available)

The Broncos are projected to be $24 million over the salary cap this offseason. Here’s how they can fix that.

With the official start of NFL free agency (March 13) exactly one month away, the Denver Broncos are facing a salary cap dilemma.

The Broncos are projected to be about $24 million over the salary cap this offseason, so the team will have to get creative if they want to spend in free agency this spring. Denver can create more cap space through restructures, trades and player cuts.

With help from OverTheCap.com, we’ve come up with a five-step plan to get the Broncos under the salary cap with room to spare. These projected moves are made presuming that Denver will designate quarterback Russell Wilson as a post-June 1 release next month (which isn’t guaranteed, but seems probable).

If Wilson is cut and designed as a post-June 1 transaction, his salary cap hit won’t be different than his current 2024 cap hit ($35.4 million), according to OTC. So the team’s projected cap space factors in Wilson’s (expected) release.

Here’s how the Broncos can get out of the red this offseason.

Broncos’ offensive line took a big step forward in 2023

The Broncos’ offensive line was ranked 21st by PFF in 2022. After Sean Payton made several changes, the unit ranked 7th in 2023.

When Sean Payton arrived last offseason, one of his first big tasks was fixing the Denver Broncos’ offensive line.

By the end of the 2022 campaign, the team’s starting offensive line was Cam Fleming, Quinn Bailey, Graham Glasgow, Quinn Meinerz and Billy Turner. Payton quickly made big changes.

Glasgow was cut and Turner walked in free agency. Fleming and Bailey were re-signed as backups. Garett Bolles and Lloyd Cushenberry returned from injuries and Meinerz was the only Week 18 2022 starter assured of keeping his job in 2023.

When free agency opened, Payton immediately gave big contracts to guard Ben Powers and right tackle Mike McGlinchey to give the team a new starting lineup of Bolles, Powers, Cushenberry, Meinerz and McGlinchey.

Pro Football Focus is not infallible, but the website is useful. PFF ranked Denver’s offensive line 21st out of 32 units in 2022. After the 2023 regular season wrapped up, the Broncos’ offensive line was ranked 7th by PFF.

That represents a huge turnaround up front for Denver. Cushenberry is now scheduled to become a free agent, but the Broncos appear confident that 2023 seventh-round pick Alex Forsyth will be prepared to start in 2024.

Cushenberry’s free agent status gives the unit some uncertainty going into the offseason, but a Bolles-Powers-Forsyth-Meinerz-McGlinchey lineup would still be a much better scenario than Denver’s lineup in 2022. There’s always room for improvement, but the Broncos’ offensive line took a step forward in Payton’s first season.

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Mike McGlinchey ‘very excited’ about Broncos’ future outlook

“I’m very excited for the future,” Broncos right tackle Mike McGlinchey said.

The Denver Broncos did not post a winning record in 2023 and the team did not make the playoffs. By both of those measurements, the season was a failure for the Broncos.

Denver did make progress in Year 1 under new head coach Sean Payton, though. Just ask new right tackle Mike McGlinchey.

“I think you’ve seen it kind of progress with our win and loss record, to be honest with you,” McGlinchey said last Thursday. “You knew it wasn’t going to be the smoothest sailing coming in with a new coach and a new organization and learning the ropes. Everybody was in a new environment. Certainly, those things don’t come easy, especially when you’re trying to overcome a lot of hardship from years past.

“I think this team found a little bit of their heart this year and certainly found what it means to compete as hard as you can each week. We battled. I think the heart and the character of this team and what we’ve shown and what we’ve overcome to be, even with where we were this last month or so — I think it says a lot about who we are and what we’re going to become. I’m very excited for the future. I’m very excited to be a Denver Bronco for a long time and see how good we can get.”

While the Broncos did not qualify for the playoffs, the team’s record is a sign of progress. Eight wins was the most victories Denver has had in a single season since 2016 when Gary Kubiak was the coach. There were plenty of disappointments from 2023, but there are positive takeaways as well. McGlinchey is optimistic that even brighter days are ahead.

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Broncos made 5 roster moves ahead of 2023 season finale

Broncos placed Mike McGlinchey and Delarrin Turner-Yell on IR, activated Alex Palczewski from IR, promoted Art Green and elevated Devon Key.

The Denver Broncos made five roster moves this week ahead of Sunday’s season finale against the Las Vegas Raiders.

First, the Broncos placed safety Delarrin Turner-Yell on injured reserve after he tore his ACL against the Los Angeles Chargers. To provide more depth at safety after losing Turner-Yell, Denver elevated defensive back Devon Key from the practice squad to the game-day roster on Saturday afternoon.

Additionally, the Broncos placed right tackle Mike McGlinchey (ribs) on injured reserve. McGlinchey was ruled out on Friday. Denver is now set to start Cam Fleming at right tackle in Week 18.

To fill the two spots on the 53-man roster from Turner-Yell and McGlinchey going on IR, the Broncos promoted cornerback Art Green from the practice squad and elevated offensive tackle Alex Palczewski from injured reserve.

Key was a game-day roster elevation — Green and Palczewski were fully promoted to the 53-man roster. See the team’s roster moves below.

Raiders, Broncos Week 18 final injury report: Josh Jacobs, Michael Mayer both OUT

Josh Jacobs, Michael Mayer both OUT on Raiders final injury report

The final final injury report of the Raiders 2023 season is out. And so too are RB Josh Jacobs and TE Michael Mayer.

Jacobs was lost to a quad injury against the Vikings in Week 14 and hasn’t played since. Mayer was lost the following week against the Chargers to a toe injury and also hasn’t played since.

The Broncos ruled out two players — TE Chris Manhertz (illness) and T Mike McGlinchey (Ribs).

Broncos injury updates: Delarrin Turner-Yell to IR; Mike McGlinchey outlook ‘more optimistic’

The Broncos will place DB Delarrin Turner-Yell (ACL) on injured reserve. RT Mike McGlinchey (ribs) has a more optimistic outlook.

The Denver Broncos lost backup safety Delarrin Turner-Yell (knee) and right tackle Mike McGlinchey (ribs) to injuries during Sunday’s game against the Los Angeles Chargers.

After the game, Broncos coach Sean Payton said that he believed McGlinchey would be “fine.” One day later, the coach revealed that Turner-Yell suffered a season-ending ACL injury.

“Tight now, Mike’s news is better,” Payton said during his conference call with reporters Monday. “Delarrin Turner-Yell has an ACL. He’s going to be out and put on IR. Mike’s [injury] is a rib. I won’t get into the details, but we’re a lot more optimistic about him.”

Cam Fleming filled in for McGlinchey against the Chargers. Yell has played 71% of Denver’s special teams snaps this season. The Broncos will have to sort out a special teams replacement and their safety depth ahead of Sunday’s season finale against the Las Vegas Raiders.

After releasing Kareem Jackson last week and losing Turner-Yell on Sunday, Denver’s only remaining backup safety on the active roster is rookie JL Skinner, who has dressed for just one game this season.

The Broncos also have Devon Key and Keidron Smith available on the practice squad. It would not be surprising to see Key or Smith called up to the active roster for Week 18.

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Mike McGlinchey says Broncos beating Chiefs was ‘a win that can change an organization’

“That’s a win that’s going to make us believers,” Broncos OT Mike McGlinchey said. “It’s a win that can change an organization.”

The Denver Broncos had a losing culture in recent years.

After winning Super Bowl 50, the Broncos missed the playoffs in seven straight seasons following quarterback Peyton Manning’s retirement. During that time, Denver lost 16 straight games to the Kansas City Chiefs.

That losing streak was finally snapped on Sunday when the Broncos upset the Chiefs 24-9 at home. It was the kind of win that can turn around not just a season, but the direction of the entire franchise.

“It feels so good for the guys that have been here and that have fought tooth and nail to keep this place afloat,” offensive tackle Mike McGlinchey said. “Justin Simmons, Garrett Bolles, Tim Patrick, Courtland Sutton – guys that have been here for such a long time and put their heart and soul into this organization. To come out and beat these guys, the defending world champs and number one team in the AFC. That’s a huge win. That’s a win that’s going to make us believers. It’s a win that can change an organization.”

Sunday might have been the first step in the process of getting the franchise back on track. Denver coach Sean Payton is now 1-1 against the Chiefs since taking charge of the Broncos, and he’s now tasked with getting a 3-5 team back into the playoff hunt. McGlinchey seems to believe the team is now trending in the right direction.

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Broncos OT Mike McGlinchey: ‘We can’t pack it in’

“We can’t pack it in. There are 15 games left in the season,” Broncos OT Mike McGlinchey said. “The only thing left to do is get better.”

The Denver Broncos are 0-2, which is a bad sign for their playoff hopes, but there’s still a lot of football left to be played.

Following a 35-33 loss to the Washington Commanders in Week 2, Broncos right tackle Mike McGlinchey was disappointed, but not ready to throw in the towel.

“We just have to get better,” McGlinchey said after Sunday’s loss. “We can’t pack it in. There are 15 games left in the season, but we have a really good football team and a really good opportunity to still fight and turn this thing around. It’s a bad day today, unfortunate that we didn’t get this done when we had it from the start. But the only thing left to do is get better.

“You can’t quit and this is the professional football league and there’s a reason we’re all here. It is hard, it’s really, really, really hard to win and we have a lot of things to still overcome. For the most part, I thought we played hard today. I think we never quit no matter what the way the momentum swung but we just did not execute enough.”

McGlinchey, 28, was the team’s worst offensive lineman against the Commanders, according to grades from Pro Football Focus. He needs to improve as much as anyone on the team — quickly.

The Broncos will get their first opportunity to turn things around when they face the Miami Dolphins on the road in Week 3. There’s a lot of season left to be played, but Denver needs to start winning soon to avoid digging a hole that’s too deep to climb out of this fall.

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Broncos’ offensive line ‘did a great job’ in Week 1

From weakness to strength? The Broncos’ offensive line ranked as one of the NFL’s best in Week 1.

The Denver Broncos’ offensive line allowed 63 sacks last season, an average of 3.7 per game. When new coach Sean Payton arrived this offseason, addressing the offensive line was a top priority.

Payton splashed in free agency by signing guard Ben Powers and right tackle Mike McGlinchey, two veterans to help shore up the line. The revamped unit was not perfect in Week 1 — quarterback Russell Wilson was sacked twice — but Denver’s offensive line had a mostly positive season-opening performance.

“The o-line did a great job,” Wilson said. “They did a really, really good job of keeping everybody away. Obviously you have Maxx Crosby over there who’s playing both sides and the bubbles, and McGlinchey did a really good job with him.

“The front five that we have — it’s going to be a winning front five. I do believe that those guys up front can do it all in terms of the run game and passing game. They’ve got great confidence. I think that showed today.”

The Broncos’ line allowed a 17.1% pressure rate, which ranked first in the NFL in Week 1, according to NFL Next Gen Stats (via Aric DiLalla of the team’s official website). Denver’s line ranked fourth with a 70% pass block win rate and 12th with a 72% run block win rate, according to ESPN Analytics (via @Doug_Analytics).

Those numbers are extremely encouraging for a unit that was a weakness last season.

“[The performance] was good,” McGlinchey said. “It was solid, and I think there is still a lot to get better at. You certainly would like to take more control in the run game. I don’t think we had too many opportunities based off what they were giving us because I think throwing the ball was the way to do it today. I thought we did well.

“I thought we communicated well. I thought the five of us did well. … I thought we played at a high level today. I think the good thing is that we know we can still get a lot better from this.”

The Broncos’ offensive line will aim to take the next step forward when Denver hosts the Washington Commanders in Week 2.

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