From bad to worse.
Vance Joseph, head coach of the Denver Broncos, confirmed on Monday during his press availability that left guard Ronald Leary has torn his Achilles and will be placed on the Injured Reserve.
Yesterday, the Broncos started the game with backups Billy Turner and Max Garcia on the right side of their line. And after Garcia was benched in favor of Connor McGovern, Leary was injured, forcing Garcia back into the game.
That injury happened early in the second half as Leary blocked a Los Angeles Rams defensive lineman, planted on his left foot, and after Case Keenum threw the ball, Leary hobbled on his right leg before going down. He was down on the turf for a while before being helped to his feet and off the gridiron.
Leary has been mostly consistent in his two years with the Broncos, although he was able to play only 11 games for the team in 2017 due to a back injury forcing him to the Injured Reserve. Now, six games into this season, it seems he’s destined to land on the IR once again.
If he does, that will likely mean Garcia taking over full-time at left guard, next to the struggling Garett Bolles.
The Broncos offensive line turned into a “MASH” unit when Leary went down — already missing starting right tackle Jared Velheer — and it looks like they’ll be forced to play with two backups for multiple weeks at this point. That’s dependent on when Veldheer, who has a knee injury, can return to the gridiron.
