The injuries keep piling on for the Denver Broncos as they are likely to lose starting inside linebacker Jonas Griffith for the season. Who will step up in his place?
Denver Broncos lose starter to injury
The Broncos defense has been stellar this season despite the offense’s disappointing lack of production. Unfortunately for the Denver defense, they’ve been impacted by injuries all throughout this season and will now likely be without starting linebacker Jonas Griffith for the entire season.
9News’ Mike Klis first reported this morning that Griffith aggravated a foot injury during practice on Thursday at the UCHealth Training Center.
With 8 weeks remaining, Jonas Griffith is most likely finished for the year as foot injuries can be among the most difficult. #9sports https://t.co/IeEHVcFSU9
— Mike Klis (@mikeklis) November 18, 2022
Griffith has started in eight games for the Broncos this season and has tallied 46 tackles and one interception. He’ll become an exclusive rights-free agent after this season for the Broncos.
The Denver defense has gone through various games this season without free safety Justin Simmons, nickel corner K’Waun Williams, inside linebacker Josey Jewell, outside linebacker Randy Gregory, and cornerback Ronald Darby who suffered a season-ending ACL injury in Week 5. Now they are poised to potentially miss Griffith for the year with just eight games remaining.
If Griffith misses the next eight weeks, Alex Singleton will step in and start in his place. Singleton is the Broncos leading tackler this year with 70 tackles having contributed on both defense and special teams this year.
Singleton has been an impact player for Denver this season on defense, including a 21-tackle performance against the Los Angeles Chargers in Week 6. He plays with a noticeably high motor, and discipline, and attacks his run fits quickly. He’s also been underrated for the Broncos’ defense in the pass coverage game where his main assignment is to cover a middle hook zone and in some situations a running back out of the backfield.
It will be interesting to see how he and Josey Jewell finish the year at inside linebacker, especially with Singleton being on a one-year deal.
Injuries are part of the game, but Denver at this point has lost so many players to non-contact or soft-tissue injuries that it raises a multitude of questions. This is something that the Walton-Penner Family ownership group will look into.
Cody Roark is Mile High Sports lead reporter covering the Denver Broncos — Cody covers every practice, every home and away game plus community events related to the organization. He also co-hosts The Afternoon Drive with Aniello Piro on Mile High Sports Radio and is the host of the Locked On Broncos podcast. You can follow Cody on Twitter and Instagram @CodyRoarkNFL.