The Denver Broncos might be able to sustain a short amount of time without superstar cornerback Patrick Surtain II — they might even be able to make the playoffs without him.
Any idea the Broncos could be legitimate contenders without Surtain, however, is completely foolish.
That’s why the news of Surtain’s injury in a Week 8 win over the Dallas Cowboys was met with such hand wringing and why the first glimmer of hope on that same injury front has been so encouraging, with NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport dropping a new report on Wednesday, October 29.
“The Broncos are not planning to place reigning DPOY Pat Surtain II on Injured Reserve, source said, and it’s possible that he only misses 3 games with his pec strain,” Rapoport wrote on his official X account. “Denver plays the Texans, Raiders, Chiefs, then has a Week 12 bye. Surtain could return vs the Commanders.”
The Broncos are one of the NFL’s hottest teams right now — winners of 4 consecutive games and sitting at 6-2 and in first place in the AFC West.
There was some thought initially that the Broncos could lose Surtain for most of the rest of the regular season.
“Surtain has been durable for the Broncos, but this injury threatens to sideline him for up to six weeks,” Heavy.com’s Josh Buckhalter wrote on October 28. “However, the Broncos are holding out hope that the All-Pro defender will be able to make it back sooner … Placing Surtain on IR would mean he has to miss at least four games. His earliest return date would have been Week 14 against the Las Vegas Raiders.”
Singularly Dominant Defensive Player in NFL
Surtain capped off his ascent to NFL royalty in 2024 when he was named NFL Defensive Player of the Year; the first Denver player to do so since linebacker Randy Gradishar in 1978.
Surtain kept his iron grip on the top spot in the ESPN Top 10 preseason position rankings for the second consecutive year and increased his advantage over the competition by a considerable margin.
“Surtain’s grip on the top spot was stronger this time around, as he earned nearly 90% of the first-place votes compared to slightly above 50% last summer,” ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler wrote on July 17. “He has clearly separated himself from the field … On 56 targets, Surtain produced a strong 19.6% ball-hawking rate with 11 pass deflections and four interceptions. His 5.5 yards allowed per target was top five in the league and he gave up just two touchdowns all season.”
Moss Will Take Over CB1 for Broncos
There will be one player on the Broncos who will have the biggest spotlight on them with Surtain out — fellow outside starting cornerback Riley Moss.
Moss, 6-foot and 193 pounds, was a 2023 third round pick and is in his second season as a full time starter. Through the first 8 games, he has 38 tackles and 9 pass deflections.
With Surtain on the other side, he’s also gotten a tremendous amount of work because quarterbacks almost never try and test PS2. According to Next Gen Stats, Moss has been thrown at an NFL high 53 times this season and has allowed the lowest completion percentage of any cornerback over 22 targets at 45.3 percent.
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This article was originally published on Heavy Sports
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