Jerry Jeudy’s injury revealed after being carted off
Denver's star receiver Jerry Jeudy suffered a high ankle sprain after being carted off with a gruesome lower leg injury during the Broncos' opening-day win at New York.
Jeudy had an X-ray on his lower leg which returned negative according to NFL Network insider Tom Pelissero. Pelissero said Jeudy suffered a high-ankle sprain, and crucially not a broken ankle which had been feared.
Jeudy's leg got caught underneath Giants' cornerback James Bradberry’s body as he caught a pass during the third quarter. Bradberry's body landed on Jeudy's ankle causing the sophomore receiver to writhe in pain on the Meadowlands turf.
Despite the heavy collision, Jeudy somehow managed to hang on to the ball -- initially ruled a fumble -- for a 20-yard catch to the New York 15. Jeudy was eventually carted off on the field with his head in his hands. Not long after, he was officially ruled out for the game.
The Broncos' managed to score a touchdown four plays after the Jeudy injury as quarterback Teddy Bridgewater found tight end Albert Okwuegbunam to put Denver up 17-7. The former Alabama receiver amassed the most receiving yards -- 6 receptions for 72 yards -- despite exiting the game with 8:33 left in the third.
There's no timeline on Jeudy's return to the field but former Bengals star Chad Johnson told Twitter he could have No. 10 "ready for the next game easily."
Head coach Vic Fangio would've been forgiven for indulging in the Green Day Classic Wake Me Up When September Ends, after his team had an 0-7 record in the NFL's opening month.
Fangio's decision to go for it and convert three of three fourth down attempts were critical in ensuring September started off right.
"It definitely was big," Fangio told reporters post-game. "That would've been the story all week, now you guys gotta throw away those stories and write a new one!"
Fangio may never want it to end after his team's dominant 27-13 victory over the Giants. The much-maligned quarterback Teddy Bridgewater executed superbly in a surgical offensive performance, going 28/36 for 264 yards, two touchdowns and critically zero interceptions.
The running game held its own with rookie Javonte Williams rushing 14 times for 45 yards, while Melvin Gordon's 70-yard fourth quarter touchdown took him 101 yards off 11 carries. Denver’s defense lived up to the hype, holding New York to just 60 rushing yards, 50% conversion on third down and one-for-three on fourth.
Von Miller returned to the field in captivating fashion, playing his first game since Week 17, 2019. The eight-time All-Pro had two sacks, two quarterback hits and three tackles-for-loss. All of it came without star pass rusher Bradley Chubb who was inactive with an ankle injury. Fangio provided an update on his status moving forward.
"Early in the week I thought he was going to play, everybody did, but then his ankle never really improved much during the week," Fangio said. "So hopefully he'll be back here sometime soon but we'll see."
Miller, Teddy Bridgewater and first-year General Manager George Paton were given the game balls in Denver's first September victory under Vic Fangio.