New Brisbane coach Anthony Seibold wants critics of the NRL club and its culture to take a deep breath as he backs his young squad to come good.
Former Broncos greats Gorden Tallis and Justin Hodges have led the chorus of criticism this week, slamming what they view as a lack of understanding and accountability from the current squad.
The Broncos are 1-3 this season but Seibold points to last year's slow start at Red Hill when asking for calm ahead of Thursday's clash with the Wests Tigers.
"Everyone's just got to take a breath and take a step back," Seibold said.
"The Broncos were three (wins) from seven at the start of last year and, last game they played last year, they got beaten by 48 points (48-18 against Dragons in first week of finals).
"I haven't seen that commentary (from former players). I can't comment ... but as far as the culture, your actions, it's not just fancy words on the building."
Last season's NRL coach of the year said the club's young roster had learnt plenty from an opening month that included games against both of last year's grand finalists.
"I think this playing group's got so much potential," he said.
"This is the next generation of the Broncos; one of the reasons the club invested in me long term is my background in developing players.
"Tomorrow, we've got nine guys who are 22 or younger, three are 19-year-old kids and I just think that's a fantastic opportunity to create our own legacy."
One of those 19-year-olds is Payne Haas, who will play his first NRL game this season on Thursday after serving a club-imposed ban.
The boom forward will replace back Gehamat Shibasaki in a beefed-up 17 to counter the visitors' size.
Seibold has been pleased with the teenager's response since his four-game suspension for failing to cooperate adequately with the NRL's integrity unit.
"It's been a long seven or eight weeks for him, to be fair," Seibold said.
"It's a good opportunity for us to have a bench full of forwards ... we're thinking they're (Wests) a really experienced and strong pack with Ben Matulino, Russell Packer, Robbie Farah as well."
STATS THAT MATTER:
* Brisbane's 21-6 record against the Tigers is their best against any current team and the Tigers' worst
* The Tigers are missing the fewest tackles per game (16.8), while the Broncos are missing the most (32.2)
* Corey Oates has scored 13 tries in his past eight matches and 16 in his past 13 at Suncorp Stadium.
