Broncos HC Sean Payton stays true to his process after extending Quinn Meinerz before Courtland Sutton

The past few years have been anything but stable for the Denver Broncos offense.

Turnover at HC, QB, and WR, one of the lone bright spots has been right guard Quinn Meinerz.

And now, per Adam Schefter of ESPN, "The Belly" and the Broncos have agreed to a massive contract extension.

Meinerz is around for the long haul

A third round pick out of small school Wisconsin-Whitewater, Meinerz took the draft community by storm in 2021 thanks to his unique workouts and confidence to "let the belly breathe" as he would say, wearing his guard-like physique with a sense of pride.

But Meinerz quickly became more than feel-good story, seeing an increase in snap counts over the past three years and earning an elite 83.7 PFF grade in 2023 . So heading into the final year of his rookie deal, the Broncos decided to lock down one of the few players that has been a staple on a rotating cast of an offense over the past few seasons.

For Denver, the move signals more of Sean Payton's identity and offensive philosophy, as the team has now signed Mike McGlinchey, Ben Powers and Quinn Meinerz all within an 18 month span.

The move tells you that not only does Payton want to be a force up front, but he believes that rookie QB Bo Nix will do his best within the confines of the pocket, something he made sure to have with Drew Brees.

Opting to spend heavy amounts of money at guard, Payton knows that his offense works best when the interior of his line can create push at the point of attack, but more importantly, can protect the depth of the pocket from interior rushers.

And that aligns with the skillset of Nix, who is elusive and displays plus athletic traits that allow him to escape and scramble should pass rushers collapse the pocket from the edge.

So with many around the team believing that Denver aced their biggest test in years during April's draft , and the team set to kick off training camp next Friday , the offense has few questions left to answer other than Courtland Sutton, who has been vocal about a new contract this offseason.

We'll see if he's next up on the Broncos list, or if they are content with playing through the trenches.