'Still don't have answers': Broncos guard Quinn Meinerz reveals he is playing through undiagnosed illness

Denver Broncos right guard Quinn Meinerz has emerged as one of the NFL's top interior linemen, but the first team All-Pro has quietly battled an undiagnosed illness for more than a month while anchoring an offensive line that has allowed the second-fewest sacks in the league.

Meinerz told reporters Thursday that he has dealt with recurring symptoms since early October. The illness forced him to miss practice at the start of the month and flared again during last week's 10-7 win against the Las Vegas Raiders when he sat out most of the second half before returning for the team's final drive.

"It's something I've been battling here and there throughout the entire season," Meinerz said, via the Denver Gazette. "Still don't necessarily have answers but working through it every single day, and we'll see what happens."

Despite the uncertainty, Meinerz has played nearly every offensive snap during one of Denver's most demanding stretches of the year. He logged every snap in comeback wins over the Philadelphia Eagles, New York Jets, New York Giants and Houston Texans, and played all but the final handful of plays in the Broncos' blowout victory against the Dallas Cowboys. He said he initially thought his symptoms were related to travel fatigue during the team's back-to-back road trips to Philadelphia and London in October.

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The symptoms hit hardest against Las Vegas, when Meinerz stayed in the locker room at halftime for fluids and treatment before returning for the final 4:26 in the fourth quarter. Denver closed out the win on the ground as running back J.K. Dobbins helped drain the clock to extend the streak to seven consecutive victories -- the team's longest since the 2015 season when it went on to win Super Bowl 50.

"I'm still working through it," Meinerz said. "So I got some more testing and stuff. ... It's random. Some days I feel great, some days I don't."

He has not appeared on the Broncos' injury report this week ahead of Sunday's AFC West clash against the Kansas City Chiefs at 4:25 p.m. ET on CBS. Denver enters Week 11 holding a 2.5-game lead over the nine-time reigning division champions in the AFC West standings.

Meinerz's situation comes during an emotional week for the Broncos, as linebacker Alex Singleton revealed Monday that a league drug test flagged elevated hormone levels that led to a testicular cancer diagnosis. Singleton underwent surgery last Friday after playing in Thursday night's game and said he expects to return in the coming weeks.