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Fangio Applauds Garett Bolles' Turnaround But Issues Challenge: 'He's Got To Become More Football-Oriented'

How has Garett Bolles been able to bounce back from his egregious Week 2 performance? A little Mike Munchak never hurts.
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Fans are still trying to forget Garett Bolles' Week 2 performance vs. the Chicago Bears in which he was flagged a whopping five times for holding, four of which were accepted. But it's pretty hard to shake something so egregious. 

For a player who has led the league in individual penalties since arriving as a Denver Broncos' first-round pick back in 2017, even that was beyond the pale. Calls for Bolles to be benched echoed across the Rocky Mountain region. 

However, Vic Fangio remained deaf to those cries. 

In the ensuing two games since that Bears travesty, Bolles has played remarkably well. And he hasn't been penalized once. In fact, despite going against the 'Sack-sonville' Jaguars last week, the Broncos' offensive line did not relinquish a single sack on Joe Flacco. 

So what has changed for Bolles? Coach Fangio sussed out the situation on Thursday. 

"I think [Offensive Line Coach] Mike [Munchak]’s done a great job with him," Fangio said. "I think Mike and him have handled the turmoil of that one game well and gotten over it hopefully and keeps progressing. I’m sure it’s not the last holding penalty he’s ever going to get in his career, but I’m very hopeful and optimistic about his future.”

Translation: Mike Munchak happened. Fans expected the presence of arguably the best O-line coach in the NFL to have a stabilizing effect on Bolles but the early returns in Weeks 1 and 2 were not encouraging. 

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But it's possible fans underestimated how much time it would take for Munchak to reach Bolles, or perhaps a better way of saying it is, Munchak needed a lightning-rod type of teachable moment. 

Week 2 most certainly was that. Bolles was booed off the field. Local print, radio, television and the blogosphere crucified him brutally and justifiably so. It was the apex of incompetence. 

However, it might have been just the breaking point to finally allow Bolles himself to face reality, and accept Munchak's coaching from a humble, rock-bottom perspective. That's just my running theory. 

“I think he’s bounced back well," Fangio said. "He obviously hasn’t had any called since then. He’s playing well. Like I told you guys back then and pretty much throughout, I believe in the guy. He’s just got to become more football-oriented. He’s had a checkered past in football."

Bolles' dicey past has been well-documented, as has the fact that he only had one year of playing left tackle in Division I football before hearing his name called in round one of the draft. More interesting, though, is Fangio's comment about Bolles having to "become more football-oriented". 

While I can't be certain of exactly what Fangio means, I can only assume that the coaching staff has been of the opinion that Bolles was not eating, breathing — and living football. 

Meaning, he wasn't taking his craft as seriously as he should or embracing his responsibility as a Bronco like a pro should. That means taking the extra time in the film room, listening to coaches and applying the technique taught. Showing discipline out on the grid-iron. Perhaps that Week 2 meltdown was enough to turn the ship around. 

Will Garett Bolles continue on this path of respectability? Only time will tell, but I trust Munchak. 

Knock on wood, ya'll. 

Follow Chad on Twitter @ChadNJensen and @MileHighHuddle.