Report: Patrick Surtain Avoided Major Injury, Achilles Intact

According to Tom Pelissero, Patrick Surtain avoided major injury despite being helped off the field by trainers during the Denver Broncos 24-14 loss to the San Francisco 49ers.

That's fantastic news because Surtain is without a doubt the Broncos best defensive player and MVP of that side of the ball.

Report: Patrick Surtain Avoided Major Injury

From Tom Peliserro on Twitter:

"Broncos star CB Patrick Surtain II is believed to have avoided a long-term injury Sunday, per sources.

Surtain will undergo further testing for the non-contact injury to his ankle. But his Achilles is intact and all indications are that he avoided any worst-case scenario."

That's incredible news considering how long Surtain was down on Sunday afternoon.

The Broncos superstar cornerback was backpedaling and then turned around in zone coverage when he hurt his ankle out of nowhere.

Then, he was down for a while, and when he came back it was clear Surtain couldn't put any weight on his right leg.

The fear was he tore his Achilles tendon. We've seen it many times in the NFL as well as the NBA in recent years, especially in non-contact plays.

But as Pelissero says, the Broncos cornerback's Achilles is intact.

He'll get more tests in Denver at the Broncos facility to determine the extent of his injury.

It could just be a severe ankle sprain. That'd be the best-case scenario.

Or it there could be torn ligaments in his ankle which would cause him to miss significant time.

The hope now is that he'll only miss a few games, or possibly end up on the IR only to return in 4-6 weeks.

We'll know more soon, but considering the Broncos lost a heartbreaker when the 49ers out-played the Broncos in the second half, it's a silver lining.

Pat Bryant Injured his Ankle on Sunday too

Update: According to Mike Klis, Bryant’s injury is also not season-ending.

There's no update from the team currently about Pat Bryant's ankle injury, but it did seem more serious than did Surtain's.

Bryant caught a pass from Bo Nix in the third quarter and took off upfield when a defender fell on his ankle and it caught in the turf as he was taken down.

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It was a nasty looking injury, multiple people like James Palmer said it looked serious, which it did, and Bryant was grabbing at his ankle immediately.

Of course, whenever a player is taken off in a cart, it's worrisome.

The trainer was holding his right leg when CBS showed him on the cart for a few seconds before he was taken into the tunnel at Levi Stadium.

"With Pat, nothing right now," Sean Payton said of the second-year standout receiver. "I just asked the same question coming off the field to both, so I appreciate it."

Jaylen Waddle said, "Pat is a key part of our offense and a key part of our team. I told him to keep his head up, and we're praying for him."

Riley Moss Reaggravated his Rib Injury

Moss, the Broncos No. 2 cornerback, reaggravated the rib injury he sustained in the Week 2 preseason game against the Green Bay Packers.

Moss missed a few practices following that injury but has been fine since.

It wasn't clear when he re-injured his ribs on Sunday but he went out in the first half and never came back in the second half for the Broncos.

This piece will be updated as further information is given by the team.

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Rich Kurtzman was born and raised in Denver Colorado and attended Colorado State University in Fort Collins in the aughts. He's been a professional writer since 2011, covering Colorado State football and men's basketball, as well as the Denver Broncos, for many outlets. Current Denver Broncos work can be found on Mile High Sports. Previous credits include CBS Denver and The USA TODAY Sports Media Group.