Joey Bosa’s holdout is beginning to attract the attention of some NFL veterans.
Free agent Antonio Cromartie, who started his career with the San Diego Chargers, said Bosa’s continued holdout will raise questions in the locker room about what the rookie is all about.
“I think it’s going to be the veteran guys [who care about the holdout],” Cromartie told NFL Network’s “Good Morning Football,” via Andrew Lynch of Fox Sports. “It’s going to be his locker room presence. ‘What kind of guy are you really?’ Who’s really running the show? Is it your mom, or is it you? I think that’s what everyone is looking at. And I think Antonio Gates said it best, get your butt in here. Man up, do what you need to do. Tell your agent what you’re gonna have to do.
“I think that’s one of the biggest — I mean, I had a two-day holdout when I was coming in. But I was just like, ‘Look man, let’s get a deal done before I can get into camp.’ I think that’s the biggest part. They’re looking for you to come in and make plays and come in as a starter as a first-round draft pick. They’re not looking for you to sit on the bench, they’re looking for you to come in and make plays. They need you, and you need to try to build that team chemistry that’s with the guys in the locker room also.”
Bosa’s mother recently had some strong words regarding her son’s situation, which has only inflamed tensions. Bosa, for his part, reportedly feels that serious damage has been done to his relationship with the team. It doesn’t really matter who’s in the right, though — as Cromartie said, the veteran players on the team almost certainly won’t be impressed by this standoff.
