The quarterback competition has drawn a significant amount of attention in Denver this summer, but it isn’t the only spot on the starting offense that’s been up for grabs.
The team has also been looking for a starter at left tackle and this year’s first-round pick has moved into the lead in that battle. Garett Bolles is listed with the first team on the first Broncos depth chart of the summer and will be getting the start against the Bears on Thursday night ahead of Donald Stephenson and Ty Sambrailo.
“We’ve watched the spring and we’ve watched the first two weeks of training camp and he’s played well. In my opinion, he’s earned the right to start the game,” Broncos coach Vance Joseph said, via the Denver Post. “With that being said, we’re still competing there with Donald and Ty. But he’s played well enough to start Thursday night.”
The Broncos are in line for new starting tackles on both sides of the line with free agent acquisition Menelik Watson running as the top right tackle and the team hopes those changes will help bring about a better performance from the line than they got in 2016.