The winless Denver Broncos’ situation went from bad to worse with news that pass-rusher Bradley Chubb will miss the remainder of the 2019 season.
In a Week 4 loss to the Jaguars, Denver Broncos 2018 first-round pick Bradley Chubb was forced off the field on two separate occasions with what appeared to be a leg or knee injury. He left once only to return to the action but went back to the sidelines soon after, unable to play. On Monday, it was made clear that he won’t be returning to the field again in the 2019 season.
Adam Schefter of ESPN reported on Monday that Chubb has been diagnosed with a torn ACL. The breakout pass-rusher will miss the rest of the season as a result. This, of course, comes as a huge blow for the Broncos as Chubb proved to be a defensive playmaker already in his young career, registering 12 sacks in his rookie campaign.
Nothing seems to be going right for the Broncos in the 2019 season. After starting the season 0-4, Denver must find a way to win as a team. That, however, will be much more of a challenge on the defensive side of the ball without Chubb in the lineup.
Throughout four games, the Broncos have seen their share of struggles on defense, despite their talent and the addition of former Bears defensive coordinator Vic Fangio at head coach. There were no sacks in the first three games. However, they did bounce back against Jacksonville, registering three sacks in the first half and five overall against the Jaguars.
Fangio and the entire Broncos team need to figure out how to get in the win column this season. They haven’t been far off as, in theory, Denver could be 2-2 had they been able to pull out some close games early in the season.
Without Chubb, the task is going to be difficult. A lot of pressure will be placed on Von Miller and unproven rookies Justin Hollins and Malik Reed to make up for the loss of the second-year outside linebacker. However, if Denver can cut down on costly penalties and turnovers, perhaps they can still turn around their 0-4 start and kick the winless woes.