Marquette King doesn't seem terribly interested in making friends now that he's a Denver Bronco. After King was unexpectedly cut by the Raiders, the Broncos almost immediately snatched up the talented punter. At Denver's training camp, however, King may not be getting off on the right foot with local media.
Denver radio host Darren McKee of 104.3 The Fan claims that King confronted him Sunday, telling McKee to "keep my name out of your mouth." When McKee responded "or what?" King continued to have words with him until he was removed from the situation by Broncos PR staff.
This came on the heels of a bizarre radio interview Friday, during which hosts Brandon Stokely and Zach Bye had to shut it down less than two minutes in when King made it clear he didn't intend to talk football. After that interview, McKee responded with this to King:
To be interviewed then simply don’t do it. If you DO decide to do an interview have a clue who you are talking to. Why don’t you ask DT about Stokely as you apparently have no idea who anybody is. Best of luck punting the ball in Denver. Somehow our show will survive without you
— Darren McKee (@dmac1043) August 5, 2018
Bye responded with a timeline of the situation.
My buddy just sent me this pic of Broncos PR trying their best to keep Marquette King away from @dmac1043. Shame. pic.twitter.com/U2JqI2pkIo
— Zach Bye (@byesline) August 5, 2018
It was reported upon King's release from the Raiders that he may have had some problems with coach Jon Gruden. King is outspoken and he's not afraid to make his thoughts known. It seems incredibly unlikely he was cut for performance -- he hasn't missed a game in five years and his numbers have been steady.
Naturally, King's teammates are taking his side. Emmanuel Sanders and Shelby Harris both tweeted their support of King.
@MarquetteKing don’t let @dmac1043 rattle you. His sole purpose is to create controversy to gain a bigger following for his Twitter and radio show. 👎🏾 Don’t play into his hand. Some of the Denver media just want to divide and conquer. Stay focused on the task. Super Bowl!
— Emmanuel Sanders (@ESanders_10) August 5, 2018
What are you trying to prove leave Marquette alone he’s a perfectly fine teammate and y’all need to get off his back @MarquetteKing
— Shelby Harris (@ShelbyHarris93) August 5, 2018
On Monday, King tweeted out a rather moody message that may have been in response to the situation.
— Marquette King (@MarquetteKing) August 6, 2018
King will try to put the situation behind him. The Broncos open their preseason against the Bears on Saturday.
