ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — Denver Broncos defensive lineman Elijah Garcia grew up in San Antonio but his hometown could have been Juneau or Butte or Manitou Springs and he still would have grown up playing, with lovingly critique, the game of football.
“My dad is my hero,’’ Garcia said this week in an interview with 9NEWS. “He just always taught me to work hard from a young age. He was my first coach. We’d have talks after the game. We’d watch film together. In high school he’d grade my games. We’d go over it and he’d say, ‘this is what you need to work on, this is what you need to do.’’’
Garcia’s parents – Elijah recalled mom driving him across the city to Little League games with his younger sister strapped in the backseat while dad hurried his postal carrier route so he could attend those games – got to cheer their son on in the Broncos’ 18-17 loss to the Cardinals at State Farm Stadium.
There was no bad grade coming from Father Garcia as Elijah had two sacks in a three-play, fourth quarter sequence of quarterback David Blough.
“No, he was super happy, man,’’ Garcia said with a laugh. “They were there at the game. They got to watch it and be there in person and it was awesome for them. They were super proud parents. They didn’t want the night to end.’’
To even the most ardent Broncos fan – the kind who watches the fourth quarter of preseason games – Garcia was little known until his double-sack event. He attended Rice University and signed as an undrafted rookie last year with the Los Angeles Rams’ practice squad. One week into December, Broncos’ general manager George Paton signed him away to Denver’s 53-man roster.
“It was completely unexpected,’’ Garcia said. “I was at my apartment at the time just getting ready for the next day with the Rams and I got a call from my agent and he said, “Denver wants you. What do you think?’ I told him it was no-brainer, I’ve got to head out there. They’re giving me an opportunity and George believed in me so yeah, I was pretty ecstatic about it.”
First thing he did after he learned he was going to be on the Broncos’ active, 53-man roster?
“I called my parents, immediately,’’ he said. “They were super ecstatic. And yeah, I was excited.’’
Garcia and P.J. Mustipher, an undrafted rookie defensive tackle this year out of Penn State, have been two of the Broncos’ offseason surprises. With veteran Mike Purcell not yet practicing because of offseason surgery, either Garcia or Mustipher have a chance of making the Broncos’ season-opening roster as a backup defensive lineman. There is making the 53 near season’s end to fill injury voids. And there is making the 53 to begin the season when the roster is pretty much healthy.
“That’s my main goal, to make this roster, help this team out,’’ Garcia said. “I feel like coach (Marcus) Dixon, we’re always going over the fundamentals and just brush up any weaknesses in my game and just performing to the best of my ability and believing in myself. I know I can do this and help this team out.”
Garcia flashed his skill last week. Now, Denver defensive coordinator Vance Joseph wants to see every practice, every game consistency.
“He’s a guy in the spring I noticed right away,’’ Joseph said following practice Wednesday. “He’s a prototype. It’s hard to find a guy 6-4, 6-5, 300 pounds that are free (agents). He’s a guy that has a bright future.
“And in camp, first couple of weeks, he was a little slow. He wasn’t playing great. But Friday night, man, he came alive and you saw the length and the speed and the pass rush ability which he’s shown throughout our camp. It was fun to watch him play hard. And play with confidence.’’
Garcia, 25, spent five years at Rice and it wasn’t until he was a fifth-year senior that he broke out with 4 ½ sacks after recording just 1 ½ in his first four seasons. Why Rice?
“I thought it was the best of both worlds,’’ he said. “I’d get a world-class education, I can play Division I football and be close to home. (3 hour drive). I had a couple other offers. Air Force was probably my second choice and it was crazy enough I ended up out here in Colorado, anyway. It had everything I wanted at the time and I’m glad I went there.”
He didn’t get winning seasons. The Owls went 12-42 during Garcia’s time and he went through coaching changes. The Rams were the defending Super Bowl champions when he signed up last year but they had a terrible encore with a 5-12 record. He then joined the Broncos who were also a disappointing 5-12. And went through a coaching change.
How has Garcia – a friendly, upbeat, smiling person – been able to cope amid such dour circumstances?
“For me, what matters are the guys in the room,’’ he said. “The players around me, the brotherhood. Just playing for them and trying to get a win for them. Yeah, it was a tough season but I’ve always had this mentality of, we’re going to fight, anyway. No matter what. It was something that unfortunately wasn’t new to me but I just want to fight with my brothers.”
Now it’s time for Garcia to start stacking good performances. Arizona was a great game. Up next is a preseason game Saturday — 6:35 p.m. MDT kickoff on 9NEWS — against the San Francisco 49ers at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, Calif.
“Oh yeah, I’ve already been scouting them,’’ Garcia said. “I watched their game yesterday and looked at some of their reports. I go back to college tapes with some of these guys to just look for weaknesses and make it in my game plan and get the game plan from coach, obviously. And just go out there and perform, do it.”
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