Broncos without two biggest off-season additions in Week 3

The Denver Broncos will be without their two biggest signings of the offseason when they take the field in Week 3 against the Los Angeles Chargers.

Linebacker Dre Greenlaw will miss a third straight game, out again with a quad injury. Tight end Evan Engram, who was banged up in Week 1 but played Week 2, will be sidelined for Sunday with calf and back injuries.

Friday's #DENvsLAC injury report:

📰 » https://t.co/xNwearwLz1 pic.twitter.com/TB5j7PKfTa

— Denver Broncos (@Broncos) September 19, 2025

Greenlaw returned to practice last Friday, listed as limited, which gave a feeling that the big-time free agent pickup could be close to his Orange and Blue debut. But then he missed the entire week of practice, as did Engram.

Greenlaw missed most of the 2024 season with a torn Achilles tendon that he suffered in Super Bowl LVIII. The former San Francisco 49ers defender signed a three-year $35 million deal with Denver this offseason. Throughout his career, Greenlaw has fought through calf, groin, quad and hamstring issues on top of the Achilles, which have caused him to miss about three dozen games since he entered the league as a fifth-round pick in 2019. He also suffered a quad strain during offseason workouts back in the winter, a sign that the injury woes weren’t fully behind him after changing scenery from San Francisco to Denver.

Greenlaw tweaked his leg in training camp when he pulled up defending J.K. Dobbins in pass coverage. He jogged off the field under his own power. His usage has been limited since.

Engram was slated to be a “joker” tight end — or at least that’s the dream head coach Sean Payton has for his scheme. Having played in 108 NFL games since going in the first round of the 2017 NFL Draft out of Ole Miss, the 6-foot-3 target hauled in the most catches (114) among tight ends in 2023; four went for touchdowns, and he gained 963 yards. He signed for $23 million this spring.

The recent story with Engram has been injuries, and not just to start this season. He was heavily hampered in 2024, limited to nine games due to a hamstring injury and, later, a season-ending torn labrum. Still, he nearly outproduced all the Broncos who played the position. Without Engram, the Broncos are back to Adam Trautman at the position.

Just like how Engram was supposed to be a big-time player at a position of need, Greenlaw was poised to be the same on defense. It is hoped that the veteran fills a role that has long been a struggle for the Broncos at inside linebacker. And already Greenlaw has become more important with a recurring thumb injury to Alex Singleton, who is still getting over tearing his ACL last year, and other injuries in the linebacker corps.

The Broncos are underdogs for the game, traveling to face a hot Chargers crew.

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