Melvin Gordon Says the Quiet Part Out Loud on Javonte Williams
Melvin Gordon's decision to return to the Denver Broncos on a one-year deal was primarily motivated by his desire to win now — above and beyond financial considerations.
The likelihood of Gordon getting a bigger pay check elsewhere might have meant he would have remained an undisputed starter due to his impressive NFL resume. The simple aversion to change and uprooting himself from the relationships he enjoys also played a major part in Gordon's logic for returning to Denver.
Above all else, it was the chase of an elusive Super Bowl ring that sealed the deal to return to Denver. Gordon is now moving into the back-nine of his NFL career at a still relatively tender 29 years old.
Having seen how the dynamic will work when splitting carries with the second-year Javonte Williams during training camp, Gordon is aware the train has left the station regarding his status as the undisputed RB1 alpha in Denver, but he knows he will see significant action.
“I think they have a plan on what they want heading in, but as far as the rotation goes, I really don’t know. I think they want ‘Vonte’ (RB Javonte Williams) to be the guy, but we do rotate,” Gordon said on Wednesday. “He’ll take the first series and then the second series with the [No. 1 offense], I’ll take. Sometimes we switch, but you know kind of how it is. I don’t know how they will do the rotation.”
Gordon might have caught an unjustified amount of flak for some inopportune fumbles over the last two years, but he can sleep easy knowing that he remains a hugely popular figure in his own locker room. He is also aware at this stage in his career that it’s always a smart move to research how his new head coach Nathaniel Hackett managed to split the carries between the Green Bay Packers running backs when he was offensive coordinator there from 2019-21.
“I have to go back and look at how they did things in Green Bay with the carries and things like that,” Gordon said. ”My mom says just go out here and compete and go as hard as I can. I don’t know what the future holds other than that, but I just want to put my best foot forward so when I do so out there, they go, ‘OK, we need to get him out there more.’ I know I have the game; I know I can play and I still have the juice, but we’ll see.”
Hearing the veteran runner also admit that he’s paying heed to what his mother is telling him is endearing, but it keeps entirely with Gordon's likable persona.
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