Broncos still without D.J. Jones due to ankle injury

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — Broncos defensive lineman D.J. Jones sat out a second-consecutive day because of an ankle injury as the team once again worked inside the Pat Bowlen Fieldhouse in advance of its weekend trip to Las Vegas to face the Raiders.

Jones suffered the ankle injury in the fourth quarter last Sunday and did not return to the game, playing a season-low 19 snaps in the 27-26 win over the Washington Commanders.

Also not practicing Thursday was tight end Nate Adkins, who worked out on a side field outside along with linebacker Drew Sanders, who remains on injured reserve. Adkins has not practiced since injuring his knee on Oct. 26.

JONES’ IMPACT ON BRONCOS’ RUN DEFENSE IS PROFOUND

With Jones on the field, the Broncos allow just 3.49 yards per rushing attempt. When he’s not on the field, the team yields 3.99 yards per carry — still strong, but not quite as dominant as when he’s on the field.

Jones’ run-stop percentage of 8.17 ranks 30th among 114 interior defensive linemen with at least 100 run-stop opportunities this season, per Pro Football Focus data. He is one of three Broncos to rank among the NFL’s top 30 in that category, along with Enyi Uwazurike (5th, 12 percent) and John Franklin-Myers (22nd, 8.74 percent).

If Jones can’t play on Sunday, rookie Sai’vion Jones or veteran Jordan Jackson could be in line for their first on-field work since early this season. Jones last played in Week 4; Jackson’s most recent game for which he was previously active came in Week 5 at Philadelphia.

But even with D.J. Jones healthy last Sunday night, Washington gashed the Broncos for 106 yards on 23 carries in the first three quarters, leaving plenty for the usually-stout Broncos rushing defense to fix.

“For us, it was misalignments,” Franklin-Myers said. “Some guys, we were just in the wrong place. And tackling. Those were the two big things for us.”

The Broncos had allowed fewer than 4.0 yards per carry in five-consecutive games prior to their last two contests.

Related

The Broncos’ preseason loss to the Packers was the wake-up call they neededBroncos’ addition of veteran safety Rapp wasn’t necessarily about necessity, Payton saysBo Nix looked good to Sean Payton in his first appearance back on the fieldSean Payton provides encouraging update on Riley Moss and his rib injuryBroncos star CB Pat Surtain II again voted a top-10 player in the NFLIn Broncos loss, they got a win in something specific that truly mattered