Garett Bolles Breaks Ranks, Sounds Off on Russell Wilson Benching
Credit must be given, even if begrudgingly, to Denver Broncos head coach Sean Payton for his 'loose lips sink ships' directive hitting home within the locker room. Almost to a man, Payton's troops have held the line, as evidenced by the veterans' copy-and-paste answers to the Russell Wilson bombshells.
Almost. Left tackle Garett Bolles may be the exception.
"I don't know, man," Bolles said from his locker on Wednesday via Denver Sports' Andrew Mason. "My job is just to block (for) the quarterback, so I protect him on the field, I protect him off the field. That's what the Broncos pay me to do, so... as frustrating as it is, it's frustrating for me, since I've been here for so long and it's the same crap over and over again. But at the same time, I've gotta go out there and do my job and that's what I'm gonna continue to do."
Denver's veteran blindside blocker has seen far too much quarterback tomfoolery through the years to simply countenance going with the same old tired rhetoric. Bolles' head coach may have bristled when he heard just how forthright his left tackle was on the subject of the Broncos' fractured quarterback dilemma being recapitulated all over again.
After years and years of a quarterback carousel, Bolles had some stability with Wilson's arrival in the spring of 2022. However, when Wilson's play failed to move the needle far enough for the Broncos, and the team brass felt that his contract wasn't commensurate with his play, the 12th-year veteran was benched for Jarrett Stidham.
Bolles blocked for Stidham in Sunday's 16-9 victory over the Los Angeles Chargers. Even though it was a win, it didn't seem to take the edge off of Bolles' frustration over the team's quarterback controversy.
"It's a tough situation that things happen around here," Bolles said via Mason. "I think [Stidham] was my 13th quarterback that I blocked for. So, it's frustrating for me, especially. But at the same time, that's who Coach (Payton) wanted, and I've got to do my job."
Varying degrees of irony and outrage over all things Payton/Wilson are trending around the Broncos right now. On one hand, Payton has offered up explanations for benching Wilson, but claiming it was more a football move than one motivated by "economics."
However, it's clear through various reports that have leaked out of Dove Valley and from Wilson's own mouth last week that conflict has been brewing internally for a long while. Had the dam broken much earlier in the Broncos' season, and say, the team doesn't go on that five-game winning streak, perhaps the locker room would have splintered as players' allegiances would have been divided across the two sides.
The Wilson situation reached critical mass with only two games left on the schedule. Payton timing the controversial demotion shortly after the Broncos' playoff hopes had been all but eliminated proved to be a savvy, calculated move. However, Bolles breaking ranks and airing his frustrations provides compelling evidence that inner tensions linger on, and Payton must exorcise those demons in time for next season's kickoff.
Given how long the rudderless Broncos have floundered continues to be worrying. Bolles's admissions speak to the wider truth, even if by accident. This team has missed the playoffs for eight straight years, and the quarterback instability is a big reason why.
Perhaps Bolles' combined years of banging his head against the wall made him a bit punch drunk. It's also possible that it all somehow offered him a moment of clarity at his locker.
Either way, Coach Payton probably won't love Bolles' brutal honesty.
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