Broncos Injury Report: Two veterans return to help spark Denver
Dec 9, 2019, 7:04 AM
In a season that many considered lost, with the playoffs not on the horizon and a probable sub-.500 record looming, it would’ve been easy for a couple of Broncos to shut things down yesterday against the Texans. No one would’ve complained if they’d taken another week, or more to get completely healthy, given that nothing was really at stake against Houston.
But that wasn’t the case. As if a postseason berth was on the line, two key veterans were on the field for Denver, trying their best to help their teammates get a W.
Von Miller missed last week’s win over the Chargers, the first time he’s sat out a game since the end of the 2013 season. He was back against the Texans, returning to the field despite an MCL injury that isn’t full healed.
“He’s definitely not 100 percent, probably not even 90,” Vic Fangio said about his star pass rusher. “But he went out there and gave it his best.”
The same can be said for Ja’Wuan James. The high-priced right tackle has missed all but 20 or snap this season, after suffering a knee injury early in the season opener and then re-aggravating the ailment in his first game back. He started at right tackle, helping to spark Denver’s first-half offensive explosion.
James only played the first half, giving way to Elijah Wilkinson after halftime. But that was by design, as the Broncos ease him back into the mix.
“That was the plan going in,” Fangio explained. “The plan going in, depending upon how many plays we had, was that he would play in the first half. And then we would put in Elijah (Wilkinson) and he would be the guy that would have to go back in. (It was) probably a little unrealistic to think he could go the whole way. So that thing actually worked out like we had hoped it would.”
In a season that has been filled with a ton of negatives, the Broncos had a big positive yesterday. It wasn’t just that Miller and James played; it was their willingness to put it on the line to help their teammates, even in a “lost” season.
