The Broncos are walking into Week 5 with more questions than answers, and Patrick Surtain II’s ankle injury only sharpens the worry around a defense that was already looking vulnerable.
Denver’s Week 4 loss to the San Francisco 49ers exposed a team with problems on both sides of the ball. The offense has been fighting through Bo Nix’s struggles, and the defense has had trouble getting after the quarterback. Now the Broncos are set to be without both of their top cornerbacks, with Riley Moss also sidelined.
That’s why ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler zeroed in on Surtain when asked, "Which player's Week 4 injury could be most detrimental to his team?"
"Normally I would go with the star quarterback who's hurt, but Surtain's absence could have a sizeable ripple effect for a team on the ropes," Fowler writes.
That’s the heart of it for Denver: losing Surtain is not just losing a standout defender, it’s taking away the player who steadies everything behind him. Moss being out for a week or two only makes the situation tougher. The Broncos’ defense has already been underwhelming, and this leaves even fewer reasons to feel confident about how it holds up.
The timing isn’t exactly helpful, either. Denver’s first test without Surtain comes against the 0-4 Los Angeles Chargers.
On paper, that should be a manageable matchup. But the Chargers picked up some momentum last week with a late comeback against a tough Seattle Seahawks defense, while the Broncos are trending in the opposite direction.
So even with the Chargers still winless, this doesn’t feel like the kind of game Denver can simply assume it will handle. The Broncos can still beat them, sure. But with Surtain out, it also wouldn’t be a shock if Denver comes away with a loss.
Moss’s absence matters. Surtain’s absence changes the picture. For a defense already trying to find its footing, losing its best player is a major blow, and Fowler had plenty of reason to be concerned about what comes next.
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