Quinn Meinerz, Denver Broncos
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Quinn Meinerz #77 of the Denver Broncos in action against the New Orleans Saints.
The Denver Broncos are making their most significant decision yet, and it has to do with Pro Bowler and two-time First Team All-Pro Quinn Meinerz.
Meinerz, the 98th pick of the 2021 draft, has become arguably the best right guard in the NFL, particularly over the past three seasons under head coach Sean Payton and vice president of player health & performance Beau Lowery, who has had an impact team-wide.
Now, the Broncos have made good use of Meinerz’s contract.
Broncos Change Details for Quinn Meinerz
Quinn Meinerz, Denver Broncos
GettyQuinn Meinerz #77 of the Denver Broncos signs autographs for fans before facing the Tennessee Titans.
In the wake of the Broncos re-signing linebacker Justin Strnad and tight ends Adam Trautman and Nate Adkins on Sunday, The Denver Post’s Luca Evans offered a quick note on their cap situation and how Meinerz is helping.
The Broncos have already extended Meinerz, signing him through 2028 on a four-year, $72 million contract.
They tweaked that deal on Sunday.
“Quinn Meinerz’s camp is expecting his contract to be restructured soon, source said. Could be tonight, heading into FA,” Evans posted on X on March 8. “A Meinerz restructure could save Denver $11.7 million in cap room, per Over The Cap. Good chunk of change
Evans added that “this would loosen the purse strings a good bit” heading into the 2026 offseason cycle.
Broncos Get Breathing Room
Quinn Meinerz, Denver Broncos
GettyQuinn Meinerz #77 of the Denver Broncos on the field against the New Orleans Saints.
The Broncos figured to at least offset some, if not all, of their costs from their three deals.
“Given the way the #Broncos typically structure deals, if they opened up $11.7 million by converting Meinerz’s base salary to bonus, it would almost certainly mean creating more space than Trautman and Strnad will count for combined this fall,” The Denver Post’s Parker Gabriel said in reaction to Evans’ update.
Tomasson continued in a separate post, noting “Restructuring of Quinn Meinerz’s contract will be a simple restructure of his base salary of $16.85 million spread out over multiple years as a signing bonus.”
He added that teams do not need players’ consent for such a conversion. Moreover, the “players can get their money sooner.”
9News’ Mike Klis broke down the numbers of Meinerz’s re-worked contract.
The Broncos “converted most his 2026 salary to signing bonus,” according to Klis. Meinerz will earn $1.2 million in base salary in 2026 with a $15.6 million signing bonus. He has identical base salaries of $18.5 million in 2027 and 2028.
“A third, first-team All Pro award would again raise those salaries,” Klis added, also noting the additional breathing room the decision gives the Broncos, but at $10.9 million.
Quinn Meinerz Among the NFL’s Best
Quinn Meinerz, Denver Broncos
GettyQuinn Meinerz #77 of the Denver Broncos looks on against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Meinerz has started all 17 regular-season games in three straight seasons for the Broncos. His early career was briefly interrupted by a hamstring injury. He has not missed a game since returning, which was in Week 6 of that campaign.
He is one of 21 players who has in all 51 regular-season games since the start of the 2023 campaign, per Stathead.
Meinerz was Pro Football Focus’ highest-graded guard overall.
Heranking second in run blocking but 36th in pass protection. The latter mark was still the third-best of the eight guards with at least 1,200 snaps. Meinzerz, who turns 28 in November, is also the youngest starter on the Broncos’ offensive line.
At a position that often enjoys extended careers, Meinerz figures to add more hardware to his mantle before all is said and done.