The Denver Broncos will be without one of their best pass rushers for a while. According to head coach Vance Joseph, Shane Ray will miss 6-8 weeks with a torn ligament in his left wrist.
“Shane, at practice yesterday, tore a ligament in his left wrist,” Joseph said in a video released by Mike Kils of 9News. “Just taking on a block, his wrist got caught…he tore a ligament. He worked through it yesterday, he worked through it today. He’s had X-Rays and he’s going to need surgery.”
The good news is that with a quick recovery, Ray could miss little to no regular season time. The Broncos’ season begins six weeks from Sunday.
The bad news is that Denver’s pass rushing depth is not what it has been in recent years. Demarcus Ware has retired and Shaquil Barrett is also recovering from an injury, although he is progressing well. Given the attention that Von Miller receives, it’s important to have a good edge rusher on the other side of the line.
Ray certainly was that in 2016. He recorded eight sacks in his second year. The expectation all along here was that Ray would take that next step towards elite status. While that might still happen, being sidelined for the next 6-8 weeks surely hurts.