Greats get greater because they’re fanatical with their craft, like Picasso obsessively sketching, or the best offensive guard in football casually walking around his house, suddenly blocking an invisible blitz.

“It sounds goofy,” right guard Louis Vasquezsaid, “but it’ll hit me. I’m walking around and I’ll stop and do a pass set — boom, boom — making sure the footwork feels right, and I’ll say, ‘OK, it’s still there, feels good.’ I’m constantly thinking of scenarios where I might get in trouble, and I’ll need to adjust something in my technique.”

As we discuss and debate changes on Denver’s offensive line, we take Vasquez for granted. Perhaps that’s the ultimate compliment though — nothing to worry about over at right guard, Big Lou’s got that on lock. He wasn’t just a Pro Bowler and all-pro last season — he was the first all-pro offensive guard in Broncos history. He played each of the Broncos’ 1,207 offensive snaps last season, becoming the third NFL guard to do play all the snaps and not allow a sack. He’s as reliable as Interstate 25 North traffic at Alameda.

And he yearns to be better. It’s what you want to hear. He’s a Peyton Manning man.

Asked just how he can improve, a humble Vasquez said Wednesday, “You just focus on your job, you find your weaknesses in your game, and nobody knows you better than you. You can never get complacent — the game is always changing, so you got to stay on top of it. Continuing to be a student of the game, and trying to learn something new that might help.”

He pointed out that defenses are constantly altering how they defend the short-pass game. What worked for him in 2013 might not be enough for 2014. Adjusting is a master’s tool.

Terrell Davis was at Broncos practice on Wednesday, and he was asked about Vasquez. The famed Broncos running back had this look on his face that said — man, I would’ve loved to play with that dude.

“Normally you have an interior guard like that, you want to give him some help, either from the center or the tackle,” said Davis, the Super Bowl XXXII MVP. “I’ve had guards who I played with, who after some plays, say, ‘TD — look out for me,’ meaning they’re going to need me to come through the A-gap, B-gap, chip. But Vasquez is a guy who can man his own. He’s very quick in his sets, very strong hands, and the guy just never loses.

“He seems to be very savvy as a guard. So he’s got the game. What you see is a guy who’s technical, a tactician, and the other thing is — you have to have the demeanor of a defensive-minded person, you have to be a nasty dude. And I get that from him.”

After the Broncos’ Wednesday practice at Sports Authority Field at Mile High, Vasquez stood in the rain, autographing jerseys of other players. He’s known, but not well-known, respected but not beloved. Surely some fans got his autograph just because he’s some Bronco. But others get it. A male fan in a drenched plastic poncho shrieked, “Louis Vasquez!” — risking his smartphone’s stability by taking a snapshot in the rain. Another guy spotted Vasquez and paid tribute as best he could: “You’re a monster, man!”

Benjamin Hochman: bhochman@denverpost.com or twitter.com/hochman