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Skipper Darius Boyd says he is oblivious to the critics as he looks to redefine himself as an NRL five-eighth as Brisbane attempt to seal a finals spot.
Pressure may be mounting on Darius Boyd to retire but the Brisbane skipper says he is "oblivious" to critics ahead of his NRL team's finals tilt.
Which is probably for the best.
Boyd has been slammed this year after what some experts feel is an ill-fated shift from fullback to five-eighth for the Broncos in 2019.
There is even a campaign for 314-gamer Boyd to end his reported $800,000-a-year deal two seasons early in 2019 to free up salary cap money to re-sign the likes of young guns David Fifita and Kotoni Staggs.
But Boyd, 32, reckons he is going nowhere - and perhaps thankfully, hearing nothing.
Boyd even admitted when Brisbane coach Anthony Seibold took a stand and told cynics to "back off" barely two weeks ago it was the first he had heard of the criticism.
Seibold made the unprecedented call to defend his skipper after Boyd made just two metres from one run in a scrappy round 21 win over North Queensland.
"I don't really hear it to be honest. I heard Seibs stuck up for me the other week but I didn't realise there was a problem until that happened," he told AAP.
"Sometimes friends or family might hear something but I generally don't hear or see it (criticism).
"I don't read anything on social media. I am really oblivious to a lot of it to be honest."
Boyd said he learned not to listen to the haters thanks to lessons learned from his time at Newcastle where he cut short his stint back in 2014 and visited a mental health facility that turned around his career.
He said he was now solely focused on keeping eighth-placed Brisbane on track for a finals berth ahead of Friday night's must-win clash against Parramatta at Suncorp Stadium.
"I used to do the opposite six years ago and look at social media when I was going through some struggles with mental health," Boyd said.
"I was reading everything which is the worst thing that you can do.
"I learned that it is only a game. And I learned I just have to please my teammates, myself and my coach - that's all I can do."
Despite the flack he has copped for his switch to pivot, Boyd had no problem with seeing out his lucrative Broncos contract in that position.
"If that is what Seibs wants me to do next year it will be beneficial to get a pre-season there and hone the skills that five-eighths need," he said.
"I haven't necessarily gotten better and better each week this year at it but I get more confident each week in that role.
"But I am making sure I am doing my job in the team whether that is calling plays, talking with the spine, making sure we run the team and making sure I am defending really well - that is all that matters to me."
