The Broncos and Chargers have released their final injury reports for Sunday’s game.
The Denver Broncos (3-8) will host the Los Angeles Chargers (4-7) at Empower Field at Mile High in Week 13 of the 2019 NFL season on Sunday, Dec. 1 at 2:25 p.m. MT. The game will air on CBS and in-market fans can stream the contest using FuboTV (try it free).
The two teams released their final injury reports on Friday.
Denver’s final injury report can be seen below.
Player
Injury
Wed
Thur
Fri
Status
DB Duke Dawson
Concussion
DNP
DNP
Limited
Questionable
DE Shelby Harris
Ankle
DNP
Limited
Limited
Questionable
LB Josey Jewell
Ankle
DNP
Limited
Limited
Questionable
LB Alexander Johnson
Knee
DNP
DNP
Limited
Questionable
LB Von Miller
Knee
DNP
DNP
Limited
Questionable
LB Justin Hollins
Hamstring
Limited
Limited
Full
OL Ron Leary
Shoulder/Neck
Limited
Limited
Full
OL Connor McGovern
Back
Limited
Limited
Full
WR Tim Patrick
Shoulder
Limited
Limited
Full
Los Angeles’ final injury report from Thursday can be seen below.
Player
Injury
Wed
Thur
Fri
Status
LB Thomas Davis
Knee
Limited
Full
Full
OT Russell Okung
Groin
Limited
Limited
Full
Questionable
OT Sam Tevi
Knee
Limited
Limited
Limited
Questionable
WR Mike Williams
Knee
Limited
Full
Full
Sunday’s game will begin at 2:25 p.m. MT on CBS (view the TV map).
The Broncos are expected to start quarterback Drew Lock against the Chargers in Week 13.
The Denver Broncos are expected to start rookie quarterback Drew Lock against the Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday. Coach Vic Fangio declined to reveal a starter Friday but he did say Lock will be active.
Lock was selected by the Broncos in the second round of April’s draft but spent the first three months of the season on injured reserve with a thumb injury. The QB will be activated from IR to the 53-man roster this weekend.
Lock returned to practice two weeks ago and Denver has been pleased with his progress on and off the field. Brandon Allen is expected to serve as Lock’s backup in Week 13. Brett Rypien was the team’s backup for the last three games.
Allen took over for an injured Joe Flacco earlier this month after the veteran went down with a neck injury. Allen went 1-2 as a starter.
Lock is yet to appear in a regular-season game in the NFL. The 23-year-old quarterback racked up 12,193 passing yards and 99 touchdowns during his four years at Missouri. He also rushed for nine touchdowns.
Tight end Luke Willson hasn’t suited up for the Seattle Seahawks in several weeks, but he could be available against the Vikings Week 13.
A hamstring injury has sidelined tight end Luke Willson for a number of weeks, but that might be coming to an end shortly. The Seattle Seahawks and coach Pete Carroll will welcome the tight end depth.
The entire time Willson has been out of the competition, coach Carroll’s message has continued to be the same . . . always some form of “never count Willson out from returning.”
That is a testament to the toughness of Willson, which is something he showed during the Week 9 win against the Buccaneers when he played hurt.
Approaching Week 13 against the Vikings, Willson is going to do everything he can to get back on the field.
“He’s going to try to prove that he can play this week, so we’ll see how that goes,” Carroll said Wednesday. “Trainers are trying to hold him back from going too far too soon. That’s how Luke does it. Luke has been remarkable over the years. I wouldn’t count him out.”
There it is again. Don’t count Willson out.
Willson isn’t a big part of the offense in terms of targets, but what he does provide is a consistent blocking presence from the position. And, as coach Carroll makes apparent, toughness.
If it were up to him, Willson would’ve already returned from injury. Since it’s not, each week is a guessing game. As it seems, the return just might be coming on Monday against the Vikings.
Going into Sunday’s game against the Chargers, Broncos quarterback Drew Lock is feeling comfortable and confident.
Broncos rookie quarterback Drew Lock suffered a thumb injury in preseason and missed nearly three months of practice before finally getting back on the field two weeks ago. After getting increased reps at practice this week, Lock feels confident about Sunday’s game against the Chargers.
“I’ll always be a confident guy and feel like I’m comfortable, feel like I’m ready, but [after] being able to come back for two weeks, get good reps with the scout team, take a couple with the first offense — I definitely feel like I’m back to being super comfortable,” Lock said Wednesday.
Denver hasn’t yet named a starter for Sunday’s game but signs point to the second-round draft choice making his NFL debut against Los Angeles.
“He’s confident, he’s been in the system for the whole year now and he’s been able to learn from both quarterbacks,” running back Phillip Lindsay said Wednesday. “He’s already a talented young man, so he just needs to go out there and showcase it now.”
This was by far the most exciting/predictably disappointing loss the Falcons had all season due to two onside kick recoveries giving them a chance at the end.
The Atlanta Falcons came up short on Thursday night, losing, 26-18, to the New Orleans Saints in front of their home crowd at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on Thanksgiving.
It was the same old story fans are sick of reading about each and every week. The Falcons’ slow start offensively hurt the defense, then the team put up garbage-time points, and seriously flirted with a comeback.
Here are four takeaways from Atlanta’s ninth loss of the 2019 season.
Ryan’s turnovers, offensive line killed the Falcons
Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports
Ryan scrambling behind a leaky offensive line is not the kind of production that analysts had in mind when they routinely projected Atlanta to have one of the NFL’s elite offenses the season. For the second straight week, the Falcons offensive line lost the battle up front, which was the biggest difference between Thursday’s loss and the team’s Week 10 upset. While Ryan made the best of it early, he clearly got rattled late, fumbling and throwing two interceptions to kill the team’s chances with the game still up for grabs. This was the kind of offensive performance that gets offensive coordinators fired.
Here’s a look at how the Falcons’ offense, defense and special teams units fared on Thursday night’s disappointing yet predictable loss.
The Falcons were defeated by the New Orleans Saints on Thanksgiving night, 26-18, falling to 3-9 on the season. Despite a valiant comeback effort, this team continues to struggle in front of its fans at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, losing a fifth of six home games this season.
Here’s a look at how the Falcons’ offense, defense and special teams units fared on Thursday night’s disappointing yet predictable loss.
Offense
With Julio Jones out, Matt Ryan had to look to Calvin Ridley, Russell Gage and Christian Blake. Atlanta started slow, and wasted an early drive by failing on a fourth-and-short inside the five. The running game was a tad better, but Matt Ryan’s two second-half interceptions killed any realistic comeback attempt — until the Falcons recovered two onside kicks (and technically three with a penalty calling back the first). Still, it was too little, too late. Sound familiar?
Defense
Defensively, the Falcons were put in a bad spot after a first-quarter punt block, giving the Saints an easy score to go up 7-0. From there, Atlanta’s defense tightened up. If the offense had controlled the ball a little better, we’d probably be talking about how well they played. Still, it was another sack-less game for Atlanta, which is inexcusable given what we’ve seen this team do against the same New Orleans team three weeks ago.
Special Teams
After a quick three-and-out on the team’s opening possession, Atlanta had a punt blocked and the Saints quickly scored a touchdown a few plays later. Kicker Younghoe Koo missed a field goal and an extra point. He’d later make his next two and keep the Falcons in the game.
The Dallas Cowboys had the family gathered around the table for Thanksgiving and had the audacity to trot out a bird that was simultaneously undercooked and dried out. Their normally potent offense sputtered for the second week in a row, and this …
The Dallas Cowboys had the family gathered around the table for Thanksgiving and had the audacity to trot out a bird that was simultaneously undercooked and dried out. Their normally potent offense sputtered for the second week in a row, and this time without the elements to blame. The defense gave up scoring opportunities to the Buffalo Bills on six straight drives (five cashed in with one missed field goal).
The special teams dropped the sweet potato too, leaving points on the board. In the end, Cowboys Nation had little to be thankful for as Dallas fell to the Buffalo Bills 26-15 to fall to 6-6 on the season. There were a few, not many, but a few bright spots mixed in with some head-scratching performances.
Winner – Ezekiel Elliott
Whatever that offensive offensive display was on Thursday where the team marched up and down the field only to turn the ball over, miss the field goal or lose possession on downs, it certainly wasn’t Elliott’s fault. It looked like the breakout game everyone was waiting for out of Elliott with a a 10, 20 and 30-yard gain in the first quarter.
But after having 10 carries in the first half, Elliott saw just two of them in the second and finished with just 71 yards on the ground with another 66 on six catches. 137 yards is a really good day, but it appeared Elliott could have reached 200 if the team committed to him.
Loser – Dak Prescott
Prescott had one of his worst days of the season, throwing an ill-advised screen pass that was intercepted by a lineman, having another pick canceled by a questionable defensive penalty and having multiple other passes tipped. He was also strip sacked multiple times as the clock in his head – the thing he usually has great control over – failed him. He was holding the ball entirely too long and paid for it. With Prescott struggling, it’s a major question why the play caller didn’t look to the other possible solution to get the game back on track as it was slipping away.
Loser – Whoever booked this act
What was this? One of the worst halftime performances of recent memory.
Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports
Winner – Amari Cooper
Right on schedule, Cooper had a good day in front of the home crowd, catching 8 of 11 passes for 87 yards, though he was held out of the end zone for the third straight game. Earlier in the week Cowboys Wire studied the numbers and discovered a gamut between Cooper’s home and road performances and saw that it stretches across his entire career. If Dallas is going to pay him big money in the near future, he’ll have to continue having days like Thursday, and figure out how to convert that to when he has to get on an airplane.
Loser – Amari Cooper
Guess who has to get an x-ray on his knee Friday after going down in the second half?
Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports
Loser – Brett Maher
Maher misssed another two field goals, dropping his rate under 68% on the season. He struggled last year, but made some awe-inspiring long kicks that kept him around. He started decent this year from short range, but the guy has never been a consistent kicker and it’s befuddling how Dallas continues to trot him out there without any competition.
Winner – Michael Bennett
Bennett finished with five tackles but didn’t get to touch the quarterback, so how is he a winner? Apparently, the player who was digging into his teammates to the point that Dallas closed the media from the locker room was Bennett, a guy who’s only been with the team for about a month now.
It’s presumptuous to say the team quit, but certainly there were a bunch of guys looking disinterested and Bennett apparently was imploring the team not to go down that road. He’s hinted that he’s considering retiring at the end of the year and one cannot be mad at him for joining a team with this much talent that looks this miserable right now.
Loser – Jerry Jones
All of this is on him.
He spoke at length with the media after the game and basically begged Jason Garrett to figure out a way so Jones doesn’t have to fire him after the season.
The Falcons trailed the Saints by seven before quarterback Matt Ryan found tight end Jaeden Graham for an 18-yard touchdown strike.
The Falcons trailed the Saints by seven before quarterback Matt Ryan found tight end Jaeden Graham for an 18-yard touchdown strike. It was Graham’s first career TD. Check it out below:
