ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — Latavius visits London Part II.
For the second time in three weeks, Denver Broncos running back Latavius Murray is about to make an overseas trip to play a football game in London, England.
The first time was as a member of the New Orleans Saints when he filled in for an injured Alvin Kamara and rushed 11 times for 57 yards and a touchdown in a heartbreaking 28-25 loss to the Minnesota Vikings on October 3 at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. The second time will be Monday when he joins the Broncos on their nearly 9-hour charter flight for their game next Sunday, October 30 against the Jacksonville Jaguars at Wembley Stadium.
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Murray, thus, is the man who can advise his new teammates on how to best diminish the effects of jet lag.
“Get sleep while you can on the plane,’’ he said Thursday as he sat in on his locker bench at UCHealth Training Center. “And don’t go to sleep until it’s bedtime there after you land. It will be hard to shake it (jet lag). But that would be my best advice: Stay up, don’t try to get a nap in. It helps you catch up.’’
The Broncos will play the New York Jets on Sunday afternoon at Empower Field at Mile High, then depart 24 hours later from a Denver airport to London. When it’s 5 p.m. Denver time, it will be midnight London time. The biological clock will take more than a minute to adjust.
Don’t doubt Murray’s suggestions. During the COVID outbreak of 2020, Murray earned his MBA from Syracuse University.
“We’re traveling during their night,’’ Murray said. “So sleep on their schedule by sleeping while you’re flying. Then when we land, about 7 a.m., stay up and go about your day.”
When Murray and the Saints flew back following their loss in London and landed back in New Orleans around midnight Oct. 2, he had automatically reverted to their practice squad – from where the Broncos signed him away. He took a late flight Monday, Oct. 3 to Denver and was one tired soul when he showed up for the Broncos’ practice Tuesday, Oct. 4.
He didn’t play in that Thursday night loss Oct. 6 to the Indianapolis Colts but in his Broncos’ debut on Monday night, he replaced the injured Javonte Williams and benched Melvin Gordon III with 66 yards rushing on 15 attempts.
“It felt good,’’ Murray said. “Planning to continue to try and build and get better. I think the more reps I get and better understanding of the playbook, I can go out there and play even faster.”
As Murray was handling most of the ball-carrying workload, the team’s starting running back, Gordon, was noticeably irked on the sideline with his benching. In subsequent interviews, Gordon made it clear he harbored no bad feelings for Murray and, further, was complimentary of his play.
“Look, I’d be the first to say, ‘Everybody wanted the ball,’’ Murray said of Gordon’s displeasure. “We’re all here for a reason: We’re all competitors. I definitely understand anyone wanting to be in the game and be part of the solution for the team. I get it. You want guys who want to be out there.”
Gordon will start again this Sunday against the Jets but Murray will be ready. Then it’s on to London where Murray believes his new Broncos’ teammates will enjoy the experience.
“We played in Tottenham. The environment was pretty cool,’’ Murray said. “I thought the fans were great. A lot of fans traveled out for that. I played in Wembley once before in (2014) I believe. I was with Oakland. Again, it was a fun atmosphere. I think the fans have even more knowledge of the sport because we’ve (various NFL teams) gone over there so many times.”
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