Glue Guys

“Trust is the glue of life. It’s the most essential ingredient in effective communication. It’s the foundational principle that holds all relationships.”

– Stephen Covey

“I was reading a book… ‘the history of glue’ – I couldn’t put it down.”

– Tim Vine

I’ve been really lucky to get to spend the last three decades of my life singing in a specific something, several of those years for a living, and with friends who are now connected at a depth that’s more family than anything. I’m not the best singer in the group, nor the funniest. I don’t tell the best story, and I’m certainly not the prettiest. Most creative? Nope. Most punctual? Oh god no. But there’s one thing I do bring to the party with all my wildly talented friends.

I’m the glue guy.

I’m the one who will take 80-100% of that 14 hour car trip on. I’ll make you laugh on a rough day, and I’ll give you a hug on an even rougher one. I (try to) make it easy, fun, and hopefully as painless as possible. I do everything I can to help hook our misfit band of toys together – emotionally, vocally, and directionally. Two of the others fighting? I’m trying to patch it up. A song that’s just not coming around? I’ll come up with a dozen ways to stitch it together, so we can find the one that fits us the best. I’ll set up sound, tear down a set, or just make a water bottle run to make sure it’s all as good as we can get it.

I’m sure not the reason people come to the shows. But I have a heck of a lot to do with us making it 30 years. It’s not glorious, but every good team needs something to stickum together.

Sorry. Truly. I also tell the group dad jokes.

The glue guy has always been one of my favorites over the years of watching sports. Whether it was Eddie Najera with the Denver Nuggets or Steve Foley with the Broncos, Adam Foote with the Colorado Avalanche or Todd Helton with the Rockies, I always loved the guys who everyone liked, rallied around, and raised their game with and for just by playing with them. As you can see from that list, they could be a superstar (Helton) or tertiary (Najera). The only thing they all had in common that drew me to them was their ability to raise all boats, and the respect they commanded with their squad.

These days, all four of those teams are lucky to have a glue guy (or three) amongst their numbers, and each of them propels their squads to bigger things. Team finding itself in a sticky situation? These are the guys who help make sure you all stick together.

Charlie Blackmon, Colorado Rockies

Chuck Nazty has a wicked nickname, a killer mullet, and a one of the funkiest sets of quirks in baseball. But he’s also the veteran presence that has long been a balm for the clubhouse, even through the bumps and bruises of losing discouraged stars over the last couple seasons. Charlie will be the guy helping Kris Bryant figure things out on the way in. The guy who can play leadoff as needed, but could slot in anywhere from 1-9 and be a danger. The guy who can help all the newbies, old and young, figure out how to make this damned altitude thing work in their favor. And as my excellent colleague Patrick Lyons said, “Beyond all that, Blackmon is the glue that will connect the Tulo, Nolan, Story era to what should hopefully be a successful era of McMahon and Rodgers.”

Thoughtful stuff. Stay sticky, Chuck.

Russell Wilson, Denver Broncos

If Blackmon’s dozen seasons with his team are a huge part of his qualifications for keeping his team in a better place, then how in the hell does a guy who’s yet to ever take a snap with the Broncos end up being the one who is helping them stick together?

It’s partially because Russ isn’t just a one-of-a-kind quarterback, he’s a one-of-a-kind human. Willson has already started reaching out; to his new receivers, his new team, his new community, and more. Wilson isn’t just in the position everyone rallies around, he’s the prototype for it. He’s a guy you want to follow, and a guy who had your back. Coming to Denver has brought the team back a credibility on the field that’s been missing for years. But Russ’ brains, heart, and philanthropy will be what makes him an even more crucial and integral to the city, state, and fanbase staying stuck on the Broncos.

Devon Toews, Colorado Avalanche

The Tazer is an oft-underrated part of the success of the league-leading Avalanche. Toews is the rock of a defense that was one of the teams biggest needs over several playoff meltdowns. Even with his defense-centric mindset, Devon has 13 goals on the season, and is consistently one of the most net-positive players on the ice, as evidenced by his second-best plus-minus in the entire league this year. Beyond that, Toews is always willing to get in front of the cameras when asked, win or lose, and will still put a positive spin on the squad, and what they need to do to improve.

While several of the team’s stars are also great guys who keep a cohesive unit, Toews is the glue that keeps so much going right for a tight-knit Avs squad.

Nikola Jokic, Denver Nuggets

I promise I want to write about someone else on this fun and plucky Nuggets squad, I swear I do. There are stories and angles galore, but when it comes to what holds this team together, there really is only one answer. Jokic is the magnetic force this team gravitates around, the glue that holds it all together.

When Jokic is on the floor, the Nuggets are one of the best teams in the NBA, and when he’s not, they are… well, surely not. The selflessness the team displays in all phases of the game is a mirror of Jokic’s pathologically selfless personality. The joy with which they lift each other’s successes up is a direct offshoot of an MVP who’s always willing to put himself last. The places Jokic calls home are dearest to his heart, and while Denver, Colorado will never be Sombor, Serbia in terms of the Joker’s heart and soul, there’s no doubt he loves his adopted home, and he shares that with his teammates, organization, and neighbors.

The world has become a morass of sticky situations, and the stuff that often stays still sometimes stinks. But in the face of all of that, we’re lucky to have the guys on our teams that make things stay together for the right reasons. The gents that glue it all tight. Will they be the ones to bring the next championship to Colorado? Who’s to say for sure. But if it happens, they’ll surely be a part of the reason why, and even more the reason why it will be glorious for all involved. These guys were made to stick.