Former Denver Broncos wide receiver Demaryius Thomas was extremely candid in a recent radio interview about his time with the team.
To see Demaryius Thomas in a Houston Texans uniform sucked bad enough, but to hear some of the things he had to say about the way he was treated over the course of the past year is disturbing in a variety of ways.
Thomas, speaking very emotionally and candidly with Orange & Blue 760 — the official radio station of the Denver Broncos — revealed some things about the past 11 months with the team and what he’s gone through, exposing Broncos leadership on his way out of Denver.
In an exclusive sit-down with Orange & Blue 760 radio, Thomas revealed some shocking things about the leadership in Denver from John Elway to Vance Joseph. Take some time to listen to what DT had to say about being traded and what transpired behind the scenes in 2018.
Now, over the course of the last 24 hours, my perspective on this whole thing has shifted around a little bit.
At first, hearing some of what Thomas had to say and empathizing with the way he says he was treated over the last year, I almost felt personally betrayed by the Broncos.
Thomas goes into detail about how he had a meeting with John Elway and Gary Kubiak about his leadership style, and how upset he was about not being named a team captain. The Broncos players voted for captains and according to Thomas, a number of players approached him saying they voted for him and were surprised he wasn’t named captain over Case Keenum or Matt Paradis.
Was Thomas elected a captain by his peers and overruled by the coaching staff, or was he not actually voted a team captain when he thought he should have been?
As the longest-tenured player on the team, Thomas also felt he deserved a bit more respect than being asked to sit out some snaps for DaeSean Hamilton against the New York Jets, a game in which Thomas had over 100 receiving yards. He was very upset about it.
Thomas’ comments about being lied to about not being on the trade block or trade rumors not being true are the toughest to swallow and easiest to empathize with because his agent knew what was going on the whole time and the Broncos tried to cover it up.
Hearing his comments now in hindsight, it makes a lot more sense why the Broncos were not completely honest with Thomas about the trade rumors. It clearly has affected him significantly and this wouldn’t be the first time in Thomas’ career he’s reacted this way out of emotion and let it affect him so greatly.
On the latest Knights of DEN podcast, Brandon Keckler offers some perspective that actually shifted my thinking in this situation. It’s not that Demaryius Thomas was wrong to feel the way he felt, but to share the things he did in a public forum really undressing the Broncos publicly — even if he’s right about it — was the wrong thing to do.
Start at about the 50-minute mark:
Keckler makes great points about Thomas not taking his share of accountability for the reasons why he was traded.
There was a business aspect to it, of course — the Broncos save $14 million on next year’s cap by letting him go — but Thomas was also struggling on the field.
He has one of the highest drop rates in the NFL this season and dating back to 2015 when he was the team’s franchise player, he hasn’t been playing at as high of a level as he should have been given his pay grade.
Now, Thomas has been nothing but professional and he’s an all-time Bronco. He will go down as one of the best receivers in team history and a player who accomplished essentially the pinnacle of his position in the NFL as an All-Pro, Pro Bowler, Ring of Famer, Super Bowl Champion, franchise player, and so much more beyond that.
With that being said, for him to go on a public forum and spill the beans as he did is the exact opposite of what the Broncos did as an organization, hanging up a banner to thank Thomas, recognizing him at the game, and John Elway himself guaranteeing him a spot in the Ring of Fame someday.
Those promises and thank yous weren’t enough to prevent Thomas from sharing his hurt with the rest of the world.
Is he wrong to feel the way he does? No. We empathize with Thomas. Was it wrong to go out and drag the Broncos through the mud as he did? Absolutely, even if he’s right about everything, and even if everything is true.
The interview with Thomas and the perspective Keckler offers in the podcast are both worth listening to because this situation requires context and big picture perspective.