Finding Broncos: Two Smaller School Offensive Linemen

The Denver Broncos made a big move in free agency, signing Ben Powers as a starting guard. Powers will pair well with Quinn Meinerz, who is entering his third season. With the starters taken care of, the Broncos still need to improve their depth and find a potential center. However, these two prospects could fit well with what the Broncos still could use.

McClendon Curtin | IOL | UT-Chatanooga

Pros

Played nearly 1,900 snaps and was penalized seven times total, six in the last two seasons playing 1,431 snaps.
Did play 499 reps at left tackle in 2022; most of the rest came at right guard.
He didn't face the most challenging competition but stepped up in a big way at the Senior Bowl.
He dominated the level of competition by allowing four sacks and 20 total pressures during his collegiate career.
Great frame and size, with plenty of muscle and little bad weight.
He has great length and uses it to keep defenders off his frame.
Has good hand technique and a stiff punch.
Decent athleticism and great power.

Cons

He does have a bad habit of getting too upright.
He has to maintain a better bend in his lower half.
Despite experience at tackle, it is limited, and his feet aren't the quickest, likely keeping him as a guard only.
While he didn't allow much in pass protection, his overall technique is lacking, and success was due more to the level of competition.
Has to improve in finding his landmarks when pulling and climbing.
He has a bad habit of leaning and lunging into blocks.

Overview

Curtis had a great showing at the Senior Bowl, where he held his own against some good defensive prospects. It was needed because he dominated his level of competition, but the times he did face tougher guys, the results were mixed. He has good power, but the technique does need to be cleaned up for the NFL. Nevertheless, there is good experience, and he has some good traits to work with and versatility in scheme and position to boost his draft stock.

Fit with Broncos

If the Broncos could land Curtis as a depth piece on their offensive line, that would be a good get. He can use a year to develop sitting in reserve, and that could be some insurance for Quinn Meinerz, and Curtis could be trained to take over for Meinerz after two seasons, with Meinerz having two years left on his deal. The versatility with Curtis is a significant boost, and could also see him cross-trained at center or be a guard if Denver explored Meinerz at center again, which is doubtful.

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Jake Andrews | IOL | Troy

Pros

Plenty of experience with 2,796 snaps played, with over 1,000 snaps coming at both center and right guard.
He averaged four penalties over the last three seasons.
Overall, the execution was better at the right guard than center.
Ideal frame, size, and mass with well-portioned mass.
He has plenty of upper body strength to bench defenders off of his frame.
Quick to anchor and has a powerful anchor to stall bull rushes.
Punch packs a punch and can jolt defenders.
Does well getting under defenders' pads and playing with leverage.
The hand technique is quite solid and refined.

Cons

There were some snapping issues at Senior Bowl.
Athleticism isn't ideal, and he doesn't do well when moving on a pull or climbing.
Feet are heavy and slow.
Awareness isn't there and will lose sight of stunts and twists.
Extremely limited lateral agility leads to sliding issues to protect the gaps.
Doesn't have an ideal length.

Overview

Jake Andrews is a big interior offensive lineman that did better at guard than center, with experience at both. There were some snapping issues at the Senior Bowl that would need to be cleaned up if he is going to be a center in the NFL. There won't be much value for teams running zone schemes that will ask Andrews to move a lot, but gap scheme teams will love him.

Fit with Broncos

While the snapping is an issue, Andrews can be a starter from day one, especially if you can clean up the snapping issues. So that would be the focus to get him ready, and Andrews would be an upgrade at the center spot, which the Broncos need. The Broncos have gone for bullies upfront, and Andrews fits that same mold.

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