ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — D.J. Jones had a problem. He had a muscular 305-pound body and a three-year, $30 million contract. He brought along a nice ensemble of clothes for his big press conference in Denver.
But he didn’t have a suit.
And Jones, the Broncos' prominent new defensive tackle, believed he needed one after he had just met his prominent new teammate Russell Wilson at their new team headquarters in Dove Valley. Wilson was dressed impeccably for his 2:03 p.m. Wednesday press conference at Broncos headquarters.
Jones, sans suit, had a press conference at 2 p.m. the next day.
“I was scrambling yesterday,’’ Jones said in an interview Thursday with 9NEWS, whose inquiry about his nice suit led to a remarkable story. “I had some nice clothes, but when I saw Russell, I said, 'OK, he set the bar.' What I had was not going to measure up. Not close.”
> Watch video above: Broncos officially introduce Russell Wilson as next QB
Jones placed a call to his agent Brian Ayrault about his plight, and the agent talked to Broncos' contract guru Rich Hurtado, who turned "The Great Suit Caper" over to the team's chief communication officer, Patrick Smyth.
Who knew just the guy. He called Chris Smith, a store associate of Andrisen Morton fine men's apparel in Cherry Creek. The store's prior and current clients included John Elway and John Lynch, among others.
When Smith took Jones' measurements from Smyth over the phone, he knew he wouldn't have a suit anywhere near the fit hanging from his store's racks. So Smith and Smyth worked with store owner Craig Andrisen himself, who hunted down a couple suits for large people from a warehouse.
Smith put two suits together and asked for Jones to come down to the store by 9:30 a.m. Thursday morning for tailoring. The Broncos had young up-and-coming scout Chaz McKenzie drive Jones down to the store.
The charcoal gray suit with a crisp white shirt, burnt-orange striped tie with matching pocket square, plus brown pebble grain monk strap shoes, matching brown belt and gray socks only set Jones back about $2,000. That included the rush tailoring and delivery to Broncos’ headquarters by 1:30 p.m. Thursday.
As he approached the Broncos' team meeting auditorium stage for his 2 p.m. presser, Jones was dressed to the model standard Wilson had set the day before.
“I got to get my guys exact name. Andrisen Morton,’’ Jones said. “Took great care of me. Great care.’’
With his mom, dad, brothers, wife and daughter-on-the-way sitting in the front row of his press conference room, Jones reflected on how far he’s come.
“Still coming,’’ said his dad Dave later. “We haven’t arrived yet.”
Dad was a major influence. He opened his first barbecue restaurant in Dallas, Texas in 1990. D.J. came along five years later.
“Yes sir, if you ask him he’s a master chef,’’ D.J. said of his dad. “I think it’s all in the sauce, but growing up around a restaurant was a great thing because I got to meet people there every day. I got to be social and learn how to cook, which is big. And I got to eat.’’
Which didn’t hurt him become an NFL player.
“No sir, it did not,’’ Jones said.
Besides his barbecue business, Big Dave was a master chef for the Dallas Cowboys through the 1990s. You know, the Emmitt Smith, Troy Aikman, Michael Irvin, Jimmy Johnson years.
“Hey, all I know is when he was there we were winning Super Bowl after Super Bowl,’’ Jones said. “He enjoyed his time there and he’s enjoying what he’s doing now.’’
A few years back, Big Dave started bottling and selling two sauces. One is “The 93 Sauce,” named after D.J., who wore No. 93 in his five seasons with the San Francisco 49ers, and the other is called “Bold Hawaiian Gold.” Going to have to change the first label to “The 97 Sauce” as Jones is switching numbers in Denver.
After high school, Jones played two years at East Mississippi Community College. Even if East Mississippi is no ordinary junior college – it’s football program went 24-0 in Jones’ two years there – he could not imagine then he would one day become a $10 million a year player.
“Not in that moment,’’ he said. “All you had there was books and ball. Some great people, but books and ball was pretty much all you could focus on. I think that’s the reason we went 24-0.’’
During his press conference, Jones said the addition of Wilson through trade was a major reason why he chose the Broncos.
“We had a lot of love from teams, but I felt like this was home from the jump —especially when they made the move on Russ, I knew it was somewhere I wanted to be,’’ Jones said.
He was a 4-3 defensive tackle with the 49ers, but will now adjust to the 3-4 front in Denver where defensive tackles can sometimes be called ends.
“In college (Ole Miss) I was in a similar front,’’ Jones said. “I’ve always loved this system. I’ve always loved letting the game come to me. I’m so excited to play in this defense.”
From the viewpoint of a 49er player looking in at the Broncos, Jones said he considered Denver to have “a legendary organization.” Which in so many words is what Wilson said the day before.
“That’s because it’s the truth,’’ Jones said. “When you hear something a lot you know it’s the truth. So many people have come through here. A lot of championships have been won around here and that’s what we’re trying to return to.”
So it’s not all about the money.
“No sir, money isn’t everything,’’ he said. “It’s about relationships. It’s about how you treat people. It’s about winning to me. I want to win. I know Russ said that a lot. But we come from the same philosophy. I don’t want anything other than to win.
“He’s a competitor. I love to compete myself. He’s a great quarterback. He made a lot of plays against me and other teams. Won a Super Bowl and I want to be a part of something great. I want to win. They did a great job of bringing him in and bringing me and I’m excited.”
The Wilson influence is already apparent through Jones' appearance on the Broncos' roster. And his appearance, period. Nice suit, D.J.
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