Vic Fangio explains why Garett Bolles won't be benched

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — The calls for benching Garett Bolles grew louder and louder as Denver’s left tackle racked up holding penalty after holding penalty on Sunday afternoon against the Bears.

But minutes after the game, Vic Fangio had the back of the man tasked with keeping Joe Flacco’s backside safe.

“He’s our left tackle, and he’s going to be our left tackle,” Fangio stated unprompted on Sunday evening.

This proclamation, of course, didn’t sit well with many after watching Bolles rack up the most holding penalties for a player in a single game since 2014.

But, what options does Vic Fangio have?

With starting right tackle Ja’Wuan James sidelined at least a couple of weeks due to a sprained knee, Denver’s already using their only experienced backup offensive lineman to fill James’ spot on the right side, although Fangio stated James’ injury doesn’t affect Bolles’ status “right now.”

With Elijah Wilkinson no longer an option to replace Bolles, Fangio doesn’t believe there is another legitimate player on the roster to step in at the most valuable position on the offensive line. In fact, Fangio doesn’t even believe he can bench Bolles for a series or two.

“With our depth the way it is at this point, that’s probably not an option,” the veteran head coach said on Monday, when asked if Bolles can be benched for a few plays to clear his head when things go astray as they did on Sunday.

The Broncos’ current backup offensive linemen are Jake Rodgers and Austin Schlottman. Both have zero combined starts in the NFL. Rodgers, Bolles’ only backup as Schlottman is an interior player, has been cut a whopping 13 times since entering the league in 2015.

There is one more intriguing internal option.

Arguably Denver’s best offensive lineman through two weeks of the season has played an extensive amount of tackle. In fact, in college, Dalton Risner was primarily a tackle, albeit mainly on the right side. Risner was a darn good tackle at that, earning All-Big 12 honors his final three years at Kansas State for his work at tackle including being named a second-team All-American his senior season.

On Monday, Fangio said moving Risner to left tackle “could be a possible move,” but added, “It’s one of the reasons we brought Rodgers up to not have to do that move.”

With Mike Munchak and Co. left with no options other than sticking with Bolles for the time being, Fangio said it’s “possible” the team could add more depth on the offensive line.

“But it all depends what’s available,” he added.

A few tackles available two weeks into the season include Jeremy Parnell, Ryan Schraeder and Garry Gillam—not necessarily household names. Matt Kalil, the former No. 4 overall pick in 2012, is a free agent but was cut by the Texans before the start of the season.

Since No. 72 isn’t going anywhere, Fangio outlined the plan to improve the play and decrease the penalties of Denver’s left tackle.

“The unusual part of those is when you hear one guy got called for four holdings, your immediate thought is passing. Three of the four were on running plays,” Fangio explained. “He’s just got to be a little bit more technique-sound. I think he suffers from him thinking he’s in good position sometimes and dumps the guy at the end where he thinks it’s a legal block. We have to do a better job of explaining that to him. He’s got to do a better job of listening to the explaining, but I think he can.”

Garett Bolles isn’t going anywhere. For now, the answer for the Broncos’ left tackle is to hope the Mike Munchak effect kicks in in a hurry.