ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — Alex Palczewski has only played in two games for the Broncos at right tackle but already he is getting high marks.
“No I’m not,’’ he said wearily at his locker Thursday. “Keep me down. I just want to keep on doing my job.”
Now this is a humble athlete. Palczewski was an undrafted rookie out of Illinois, where he started 65 games over six seasons before signing with the Broncos last year. He had a terrific 2023 training camp and preseason, to the point he made the Broncos’ season-opening roster. But a knee injury that required surgery put him on injured reserve, where he stayed until the final week of the season, when he was activated but didn’t play in the season finale.
“It was a blessing in disguise,’’ Palczewski said in his noticeable Chicago accent. “I was obviously upset I was on IR for (16) weeks but it was nice because I played six years at Illinois (and all 65 games), it was almost like a redshirt year (spending his rookie year on IR.)
“I had a lot of deficiencies in my body. I just wasn’t strong. I’ve had a couple surgeries in the past so those strength coaches over there (in the Broncos’ training facility) are unbelievable. I worked primarily with (assistant strength and conditioning coach) Shaun Snee, also Korey Jones and Dan Dalrymple, but Shaun Snee, he got me right. There’s so much stuff he helped produce inside my body that got me stronger.
“It was tough but trying to learn as much as I could. Pick these guys’ brains. It was awesome to see how these guys process throughout the week. I would just shadow Mike (McGlinchey) the whole week just to see how he goes about his plan, how he practices. It was tough but it was a blessing in disguise.’’
McGlinchey has been the Broncos’ starting right tackle since he signed a $17.5 million a year contract a year ago after five starting seasons with the San Francisco 49ers. McGlinchey suffered an MCL injury in week 2 against Pittsburgh and is down for at least four games as he was placed on IR.
Palczewski replaced him and in his two starts the Broncos won both, quarterback Bo Nix was not sacked in either, and the running game got going in the second half of each game. Sorry, Alex, but that adds up to high marks.
“Very impressed,’’ Broncos offensive coordinator Joe Lombardi said Thursday of Palczewski. “We talked about it last week. This guy started and I think he set a record for most games played in college. He just knows how to play the game. I think we kind of anticipated that he’d be able to hang in there and be productive. You don’t know for sure until you really see the live bullets and he’s kind of lived up to those expectations.
“It’s fun to watch when you have a guy that’s a (college) free agent who are able to come in and compete at that level and compete well. It’s very exciting.”
So what’s it been like to be out there playing?
“It’s been awesome so far,’’ Palczewski said. “Just to be able to play and play with the guys next to me has been special. Mike’s been awesome. He’s helped with the film study, giving me tips. He’s always in our meetings and whenever we’re watching film or at practice he’s always giving me tips. It’s small stuff but its stuff that can help this team win, help with our plays run efficiently.”
Former NFL tackles leader on Broncos practice squad
It’s incredible how much proven NFL talent is stacked on practice squad rosters since the league loosened the restrictions for veteran players during the COVID season of 2020.
In that 2020 season, Houston Texans inside linebacker Zach Cunningham led the NFL with 106 solo tackles and 164 tackles overall. The year before, he was sixth in the league with 143 tackles. Players like Cunningham used to be overqualified for practice squads. Now, the P-Squad is a way to stay in the game.
“I’m hoping to continue to stack on what I’ve been able to do in my career,’’ said Cunningham, who after 4 ½ seasons with Houston has also started for Tennessee and Philadelphia before signing with the Broncos’ practice squad last week. “To come out here, they gave me another opportunity to do that. Looking forward to getting acclimated to everything and getting everything on film.”
Cunningham and another veteran linebacker, Kwon Alexander, got a call to join the Broncos at the Greenbrier Resort last week after the team’s starting linebacker and tackles leader Alex Singleton went down with a torn ACL during the team’s win at Tampa Bay.
“I didn’t know it was him who went down because he finished the game,’’ Cunningham said. “I knew a linebacker went down but I didn’t know it was Alex. I didn’t find out until I got here.’’
Cunningham may need another week to get acclimated to Vance Joseph’s defensive system before he’s ready to play.
“It’s quite similar defense to what I’ve been in,’’ Cunningham said. “The biggest thing for me is learning the terminology and also getting used to this altitude.”
Bronco Bits
The Broncos worked out two safeties prior to practice Thursday — former Seattle Seahawk Marquise Blair, who played special teams in the season opener against the Broncos, and undrafted rookie Alex Johnson, who played six seasons at UCLA and was among the New York Giants’ final cuts last month.
Lombardi on Denver defensive coordinator Vance Joseph: “I love Vance. He’s one of my all-time favorites. He’s another guy that doesn’t get caught up in the short term. After the Miami game last year, there was no panic in Vance. He knows what he’s doing. He’s been around. Certainly, whenever we’re not having success, we look at things and try to make adjustments. He’s just a steady, fundamentally sound coach. I never had any questions if this is where he was going to get the defense. He’s the best.”
