Sean Payton delivered the kind of update Broncos fans were hoping to hear on Pat Surtain.
The Denver cornerback went down with an ankle injury in the Week 4 loss to the San Francisco 49ers, and there was immediate concern about how long he might be out. But Payton said he does not expect Surtain to be placed on injured reserve.
“That’s jumping way ahead,” Payton told reporters. “I don’t think so, and if they were I wouldn’t say so, but I don’t think so.”
That doesn’t lock in anything, but it does point to a more optimistic outlook than the worst-case scenario many were bracing for. Surtain, a two-time first-team All-Pro and four-time Pro Bowl selection, has been one of the Broncos’ most important players and one of the league’s premier defenders.
He’s already posted 21 tackles and one pass defensed this season, adding to a career that has been stacked with production since Denver made him a first-round pick in the 2021 NFL Draft. Over his professional career, Surtain has totaled 300 tackles, two forced fumbles, one fumble recovery, 60 passes defensed, 12 interceptions and two touchdowns.
For the immediate future, though, Week 5 against the Los Angeles Chargers looks like a likely miss. Surtain did not practice on Wednesday, which makes his availability for that matchup doubtful at best.
Still, the bigger takeaway for Denver is that the team appears to be expecting him back within the next three weeks, rather than shelving him for an extended stay on injured reserve. That alone changes the tone around this injury.
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Sean Payton's Pat Surtain Update Should Relieve Broncos Fans
The Broncos got a meaningful bit of news on Pat Surtains ankle injury this week, with Sean Payton saying he does not expect the star cornerback to land on injured reserve. Surtain is still unlikely to suit up in Week 5, but the tone of the update suggests Denver believes the issue is short-term rather than something that will push one of its most important defenders out for an extended stretch.
For a team that leans heavily on Surtains presence in the secondary, that matters. He has already been one of Denvers most reliable players this season, and the Broncos are hoping to have him back within three weeks as they try to keep the defense on track without its top cover man. The exact return date is still uncertain, but for now the outlook appears much better than the worst-case scenario. [Read more 🡒]
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Moss is only 26 and was a third-round pick, the kind of young defender a team would prefer to keep unless the return is meaningful. For Detroit, the appeal is obvious given the early-season struggles on that side of the ball, but any attempt to pry him loose would likely take a sizable draft haul and that is where the real question begins. [Read more 🡒]