Broncos still have many questions, may have taken big-time blow

What was once, existed once again. Denver Broncos training Camp 2023 was bookended by injuries to wide receivers.

Early in camp, Tim Patrick went down with a season-ending Achilles injury almost a year to the day when he ripped his ACL in 2022. And on camp’s final day, in a joint practice with the Los Angeles Rams, Jerry Jeudy had to be carted off with a hamstring injury. In between, Jalen Virgil ripped his meniscus and will be out for the year and K.J. Hamler was diagnosed with a heart issue that has him away from the team.

It’s been rough.

The Rams and Broncos were the two most injured teams in the league last year which clearly led to a disappointing season from both teams. Did we see the true snake-bit team in Orange and Blue or were they in Blue and Yellow?

“Things happen,” exhaled offensive coordinator Joe Lombardi. “I don’t think of them as being snake-bit or whatever. But I know what you’re asking.”

Broncos Country now holds their collective breath awaiting news on Jeudy. Losing two of the team’s top three receivers in the pre-season would be devastating for any offense—let alone one that, according to many, needed to be focused on “fixing” Russel Wilson. As the brilliant football commentator Giselle Bunchen once said about her ex-husband Tom Brady, Wilson can’t throw the ball and catch the ball at the same time.

The Broncos were deflated and defeated after a poor showing on the field against the Rams on Wednesday.

“Yesterday wasn’t good enough, today was better,” said defensive coordinator Vance Joseph. “I said to the guys last night ‘We can’t start games that way.’ The first four or five drives, we were out of sorts. We have to have a mindset of being dominant from the start.”

Head coach Sean Payton was also frustrated by the way devious day’s effort but said he was fine with how they bounced back and was insistent that he was satisfied with the conditioning and fitness level of his team.

However, it was hard to miss the obvious that the Broncos wilted in the hot August sun, while the sea-level Beach Boys that are the Rams displayed the relentless energy of their wound-up coach Sean McVay.

There were questions about how this team would blend from the start. Those questions remain while it appears the injury issue—that remains the same too.

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