Garett Bolles' surprising personality won over Broncos’ brass

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — Garett Bolles is nasty, he’s funny, he’s tough and he’s compassionate. The thought of him even made Vance Joseph and John Elway giggle right after selecting him.

The 6-foot-5, 298-pound offensive tackle even expressed his love for Elway when the general manager told the new Bronco he was their first-round selection.

On an initial look, teams could have been turned away from Bolles’ troubled past. However, all it took was simply meeting the 24-year old to understand that those were no longer concerns. When asked if his older age was a concern, a grinning Elway simply responded, “no.”

“Having been here [on a pre-draft visit] and having the chance to meet him and understand his background that was not a concern either,” Elway said Thursday after the conclusion of the first-round. “We just really thought athletically, the way he plays the game, the mentality that he brings to the game, he was in our mind the best left tackle in the draft.”

In fact, Bolles’ personality and character could have been the breaking point for the Broncos’ brass to select him as the first offensive lineman taken in the draft.

“Not only to get that kind of athlete at tackle and that size, but also that mentality that he’s going to bring. I think he brings a great mentality to that offensive line that needed a jolt,” Elway said. “What he brings when he walks in the door every morning about how good he wants to be and the competitor he is—I think that’s going to make the whole offensive line much better.”

Garett’s competitiveness won’t stay contained within the offensive line, either. The Broncos fully expect his nasty mentality on the football field to bleed over in practice with his competitions against the defensive lineman, specifically Derek Wolfe—who much like Garett also had a rough upbringing.

“When Garett follows those footsteps and becomes the player that Derek is, we will be very, very happy with that,” Elway said. “You know we were kind of giggling up there in the draft room; we will see how many times those two go against each other. We are going to need a bell to stop the grabbing that goes on between those two.”

His competitiveness will have to be controlled more than it was in college, however. During his senior season at Utah last year, Bolles was one of the most penalized players in the nation, a point that Joseph and Elway have already addressed with the rookie.

“I’ve already had that talk with him,” Elway said. “We had that talk with him when he was here last week. We love the passion that he plays with and how he plays, but he’s got to make sure that he stays within it. We can’t afford to have personal fouls.”

While there can be plenty of debate on other aspects of his game, just like all rookies, there can’t be any doubt about his love for the game. His character expands much further than the football field as well, which grabbed the attention of Elway and Joseph during his pre-draft visit the week before the draft.

“We found out he has a great sense of humor,” Elway said. “We also found out how bad he wants to be good. Obviously, with his background, with maturity, and with him having been to Colorado on his mission, with him being married and having a child now…I think that shows you a little bit about what he’s about. He brings enthusiasm. That’s what he was. He was enthusiastic; he has high energy.”

On Thursday night, the Broncos not only drafted the best available player, in their eyes, they added another member to the organization’s family. By simply giving him an opportunity to get to know him, his personality went from a concern to a selling point.