OCTOBER 28: Surtain is indeed in line to miss at least the Broncos’ next game, ESPN’s Jeff Legwold confirms. He adds Denver will approach this situation on a “week-to-week” basis beyond the Texans matchup. That will of course change if an IR stint is deemed necessary.
OCTOBER 27: The Broncos soared to 6-2 behind a dominant performance against the Cowboys, but they played the second half without their top player. That is expected to continue moving forward.
Patrick Surtain is expected to miss time with a pectoral injury sustained in the second quarter Sunday, veteran insider Jordan Schultz reports. A four- to six-week timetable is being floated here, via Schultz, though the reigning Defensive Player of the Year is ticketed for a second opinion. Either way, it appears the Broncos’ defense will be dealt a significant blow.
Surgery is not in the cards here, per Schultz, obviously representing good news for the AFC West leaders. It is a pec strain, per NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport and Tom Pelissero. While this is being labeled “week to week,” the NFL.com duo notes IR is possible here. ESPN’s Adam Schefter adds Surtain is indeed an IR candidate. Additional testing introduced IR here, ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler adds, noting the team had initially hoped for a one- or two-week timetable. The Broncos’ bye comes in Week 12.
This comes at a pivotal point on the Broncos’ schedule, as the team has games against the Texans and Chiefs in the next four weeks. An IR stay would shelve Surtain for the first of the Kansas City matchups, along with games against the Raiders and Commanders. The Broncos have used three injury activations this season; they would certainly save one for Surtain should IR be necessary. The team could go week to week here as well, keeping the door open for the impact defender to return without missing four games.
While this can be viewed as positive news, as a torn pec could have ended Surtain’s season, it threatens to limit the Broncos during their best stretch in probably 10 years. Surtain regularly travels with teams’ top receivers, usually getting the best of them and providing a tremendous boost to a vaunted Broncos pass rush — one that leads the NFL in sacks. Denver adjusted against a high-powered Dallas offense in the second half, but teams game-planning for a Surtain-less defense will provide an advantage.
Surtain, 25, has been a top-tier cornerback for most of his career. The three-time All-Pro was initially a bright spot on slumping Broncos teams early in his career. Denver rejected trades for the impact defender at the 2023 deadline and extended him just before the 2024 season. That $24MM-per-year deal proved to represent great timing for the Broncos, who saw the Alabama product leap onto the DPOY perch last season (before Jaycee Horn, Derek Stingley Jr. and Sauce Gardner eclipsed his AAV this offseason). Surtain intercepted four passes and picked up his second first-team All-Pro nod in 2024, helping the Broncos rank third defensively and set a franchise record with 63 sacks.
Denver is fairly deep at corner, but Surtain’s absence will obviously be difficult to match. Riley Moss is the team’s other boundary corner, with Ja’Quan McMillian manning the slot. First-round pick Jahdae Barron, who played inside and outside at Texas, has been eased into action (24% snap share). While Barron could be an option to see some time outside in place of Surtain, the Broncos used second-year player Kris Abrams-Draine in his place in the second half against the Cowboys.
The Broncos also have not needed to play much without Surtain during the former top-10 pick’s career. He missed one game his rookie year and one last season, playing in all 17 contests in 2022 and ’23. The Broncos held the Cowboys’ first-string offense to just one touchdown after halftime sans Surtain on Sunday. It will be interesting to see how Vance Joseph arranges his pieces without his ace cover man during this expected absence.