Things haven’t gone as Melvin Gordon had trusted so far in his first season with the Denver Broncos.
Regardless of whether it was his DUI capture recently or his mishandles on the field this previous Sunday, Gordon said Wednesday that he is upset for what he canceled the first the-field inconvenience in his career and guaranteed better play is on the horizon as the Broncos face Gordon’s previous team, the Los Angeles Chargers, this end of the week.
“I am sorry I was even in the situation,” said Gordon on Wednesday, in his first public comments about the incident. “I don’t want people to feel like ‘oh, because Melvin didn’t say anything or he didn’t speak on it, he just don’t care, he’s not apologetic about the situation.’ That’s not the case at all. Obviously I try to do my best to walk a straight line and lead by example, things like that. I’m a little upset I even put myself in that situation.
“I had a hard time just dealing with it myself, like I said, never been in trouble before. … To the people of Denver and everyone, I don’t want anyone to feel like I just don’t care, like ‘oh he got his money, he don’t care.’ I do (care), I do. I’m not happy I was in the situation.”
Gordon, who signed a two-year, $16 million deal in the offseason, was referred to for speeding – police timed him at 71 miles for each hour in a 35 mph zone – as well as DUI late Oct. 13 in downtown Denver. He probably will confront league discipline – as much as a three-game suspension – perhaps this season.
On the field, Gordon has seen some rocky minutes also. He bungled twice in the Broncos’ misfortune to the Kansas City Chiefs this previous Sunday, remembering a deviant throw toward quarterback Drew Lock on an ill-fated flea-flicker attempt in the third quarter.
The Chiefs returned that fumble to the Broncos’ 14-yard line while in transit to a field goal. He had likewise bumbled in the second quarter of the game and has lost three bungles effectively, overall, in six games played. He missed the Broncos’ Week 6 game against the New England Patriots with strep throat.
“It was just kind of unfortunate I put too much on it,” Gordon said of the flea-flicker attempt. ” … You don’t go out there and try to fumble. The guy who fumbles feels the worst in the whole stadium, in the whole world at that point in time. … I’m dying to make a play, I’m trying to help this team win. I don’t feel like it’s an issue with me, I just get caught up sometimes just trying to make a play.”
Gordon leads the Broncos in carries (82), rushing yards (349) and rushing touchdowns (four), yet his 4.3 yards per carry mark is a bit deluding. Without a 43-yard touchdown run against the winless New York Jets as the Broncos were attempting to run out the clock in the end seconds, his per-carry normal is 3.8 yards on his other 81 attempts.
He likewise has had 21 carries go for either no increase or negative yardage. With Phillip Lindsay presently in the concussion protocol, Gordon may have the heft of the carries Sunday against the Chargers.
“Obviously I didn’t have the game I wanted to have. … It’s not too late, we got a lot of games left to turn things around,” Gordon said. “The year is not over yet. I can still go out there and show the back I want to be, we’ve got a lot of games left.”
