ENGLEWOOD — Wearing a Bass Pro Shop cap, Melvin Gordon did not leave the media fishing for answers on Thursday.
With five games remaining and his contract expiring, he addressed his future with candor.
"Hell yeah I’m thinking about it. I would love to be here. I don’t think many people want me here, as far as the fans," Gordon said. "I want to be here. I’ve been seeing a lot of stuff. And I understand. I get it. But I love it here. I love the guys here. I’d love to be here. Regardless of the hate right now. I think it’s mostly because of fantasy. The fantasy football get people a little tight in the rear end.”
Gordon was nothing, if not honest. Fans are warming quickly to Javonte Williams. In his first start of the season, the former North Carolina standout became the first Broncos rookie to eclipse 100 yards rushing and 75 yards receiving in a game.
On the year, Williams boasts 670 yards and two rushing touchdowns, with two receiving scores on 33 receptions. Gordon has countered with 605 yards on the ground, 166 yards receiving and a team-best seven touchdowns.
Williams averages 4.8 yards per attempt. Gordon checks in at 4.5.
"We are Thunder and Thunder," Gordon told Denver7 a few weeks back.
The pair has complemented each other well. Williams has 173 touches to Gordon's 157. The split will remain, Broncos coach Vic Fangio insisted, if Gordon shows his hip is healthy. Gordon was happy for Williams after the rookie posted 92 rushing yards after contact against Kansas City.
"He went crazy. He balled out," Gordon said. "He's special. He’s going to be here a long time. He’s going to be a Bronco for a while.”
Take it away, now
The Broncos boast a playoff-caliber defense. If Fangio were only evaluated on that, he would receive high marks. The group ranks in the top 10 in five meaningful categories, including points per game (18.2, third overall).
But Fangio wants more. And it circles back to takeaways. The Broncos have 14, which ranks 17th overall. The Broncos only posted 16 last season.
"We’ve got to continue to play well. We’ve had a couple of good games here in a row, but we’ve got to start making the plays that turn a game around. We do that through just good technique, good assignment, good effort," Fangio said. "We don’t need to reinvent the wheel. We just need to play a little bit better, and when we have our opportunities to make big plays — which we almost did in our last game — we need to make them.”
Footnotes
Shelby Harris (ankle) and Bradley Chubb (shoulder) returned to practice on a limited basis. ...
Fangio did not rule out activating Bryce Callahan (knee) for this week's game.
