Kubiak: ‘Doesn’t look good’ for a CJ Anderson return this season
Dec 21, 2016, 5:52 PM
Despite battling to make a return to the field this season, it looks like the prospects of a 2016 comeback for Denver Broncos running back C.J. Anderson are bleak.
Speaking after practice Wednesday, Broncos head coach Gary Kubiak said “it doesn’t look good” for Anderson, who suffered a torn meniscus against Houston Texans in Week 7, to return this season.
“It doesn’t look like (he’ll practice). I actually had a good sit down with C.J. yesterday. He’s doing pretty well. The plan is for him to maybe start running here in the next two weeks. I would say that he’s probably on course for some time in February,” Kubiak said.
Anderson, who underwent surgery to repair his meniscus in late October, could have been designated for return to practice two weeks ago and to play Sunday in Kansas City.
Kubiak said Anderson was “really good” during the meeting and the fourth-year pro was “excited to get back to work.”
“I’m excited for him and his future. We miss him. He knows that, and it’s been really hard on him,” Kubiak said. “C.J. is a good kid. I think sometimes when you have to sit back and watch, you realize how special playing is to you. I think that’s kind of what’s happened to him. He’s excited to get back to work.”
Said Anderson said via Twitter earlier Wednesday:
I’m glad the organization believes in me we will rock and roll next season can’t wait
— Cj Anderson (@cjandersonb22) December 21, 2016
Anderson injured his knee in the first quarter of the Oct. 24 game against Houston, though he would return to the game to help give the Broncos it’s best rushing output of the year to date — 190 yards combined between he and rookie Devontae Booker (107 and 83 respectively).
No other game this season have the Broncos surpassed the 150-yard mark. By comparison, Denver’s put up just 76 yards on the ground in the past two weeks combined.
The Broncos matched a Miami Dolphins offer sheet in the offseason to keep Anderson in Denver through at least 2019. The base salary for the four-year, $18 million contract jumps to $2.9 million in 2017 and $4.5 million in both 2018 and 2019, according to Spotrac.com.
Follow digital content producer Johnny Hart on Twitter: @johnnyhart7.
