MSL to NFL: Prospect’s Palczewski Gets Starting Opportunity with Broncos
Injury Opens Up Opportunity for Second-Year Offensive Lineman
Alex Palczewski gets his latest challenge Sunday at Tampa Bay.
The 2017 Prospect High School graduate is scheduled to make his first NFL start at right tackle for the Denver Broncos. The 6-foot-6, 315-pound Palczewski will step in for Mike McGlinchey, who was put on injured reserve after spraining the MCL in his left knee in the final minutes of last week’s 13-6 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Palczewski played the final two snaps after McGlinchey was injured and he saw his first NFL regular-season action in the opener at Seattle. The 2016 Daily Herald All-Area pick spent nearly all of last season on injured reserve after he was signed by the Broncos as an undrafted free agent out of Illinois.
“Mike McGlinchey has helped me tenfold since I’ve gotten here to improve,” Palczewski said Wednesday in an Associated Press story. “He’s helping me figure out that stuff and just getting to pick his brain and how he thinks and how he goes about his process, it’s been an awesome chance to have.”
Broncos head coach Sean Payton confirmed after Wednesday’s practice that Palczewski would start for McGlinchey.
“‘Palcho’ will take those snaps,” Payton said in a story on Broncos Wire. “It’s part of our league (losing McGlinchey). Certainly Mike is a veteran.
“‘Palcho’ is one of those guys that he’s been competing. We’ll be smart relative to what we’re doing protection-wise, but he’s played in a lot of football games. I know he’ll be excited about his first start.”
Palczewski tied an FBS record with 65 starts at Illinois. Instead of being redshirted as a true freshman he wound up starting all but one game against rugged Big Ten competition. And he only had one full year of varsity high school action at Prospect because of a serious neck injury he suffered after the season opener his junior season.
"There's going to be a level of nerves, but I did six years at Illinois, so I got plenty of starts under my belt," Palczewski said on Broncos.com. "Obviously it's the NFL and there's a lot of really good players, but I'm just going to do the best job I can, work on my technique and just know that I want to give as much as effort as I can to protect the guys around me and play for the guys to the left and right of me.
"It's an awesome opportunity. The offensive line, it's the only job where it's your sole job to protect someone else. So, I'm just excited to go play for the guys in here and play my first game."
The 0-2 Broncos and rookie quarterback Bo Nix hope Palczewski can help get their offense going.
“Obviously, it’s a new guy and we have to make sure he’s hearing the calls and make sure that you bring him up to speed as best as you can and help him out and not leave him out to dry,” Nix said. “I think, especially ‘Palcho’ with his experience, he’ll do a really good job of keeping that o-line going and continue that trajectory of it going.”