DENVER—The already hurting Denver Broncos defense suffered another serious injury Sunday.
Weak-side linebacker and captain D.J. Williams went down with a knee injury in the fourth quarter of Denver’s 26-17 loss to the Miami Dolphins. The injury happened as Williams tackled running back Ronnie Brown on a screen play.
Broncos coach Mike Shanahan said Williams injured the MCL in his knee. Shanahan indicated he didn’t expect the linebacker to play Thursday in Cleveland.
“I can’t give you a timeframe, but it will be a little while,” Shanahan said.
Free safety Marlon McCree also sprained his ankle on the play, but Shanahan said he didn’t know if it was serious.
McCree and Williams were both hobbling around the locker room on crutches after the game.
The Broncos defense is already playing without All-Pro cornerback Champ Bailey, who is expected to miss another two-to-four weeks with a groin injury, and starting linebacker Boss Bailey, out for the season with a knee injury.
Heading into the Miami game, Williams led the team with 76 tackles. He is also one of the team’s key personalities, spending all of his five years in the NFL with the Broncos.
“It’s important knowing the guy that’s next to you, how we play together. It hurts,” middle linebacker Nate Webster said. “That’s our leader of the defense, the captain.”
The Broncos will call on either Louis Green or Wesley Woodyard to replace Williams.
“It’s an opportunity for someone else to step in and show what they can do,” linebacker Jamie Winborn said.
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PITTMAN HURTING: The Broncos running game went from weak to nonexistent Sunday when veteran running back Michael Pittman aggravated a lingering neck injury early in the game.
Pittman finished with four yards on seven attempts. Rookie Ryan Torain replaced him, and was equally ineffective with one yard on three tries.
As a team, the Broncos finished with 14 yards rushing.
“Our game plan going in was to try to establish the run early. Obviously we didn’t do that,” Shanahan said. “When Michael Pittman went down, we went to a different game plan. We did that by necessity.”
Torain was active for the first time this season after being out since breaking his left elbow in training camp. Torain said the arm wasn’t a factor.
“Didn’t even notice it,” said Torain, who had a ton of family in town to watch his debut.
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HILLIS BREAKS OUT: One of the few bright spots in Denver’s offensive mess Sunday was the play of rookie fullback Peyton Hillis, who caught seven passes for 116 yards and a touchdown.
He was the first Broncos running back since Floyd Little to register 100 yards receiving in a game.
“I’m blessed that the coaches have that much confidence in me,” Hillis said. “It’s real bittersweet. Overall I think I did pretty well, but it’s hard to enjoy when you’re losing.”
It was obvious the Arkansas product was a big part of Shanahan’s game plan from the beginning, although the coach added some criticism to his praise of the rookie.
“He’s got to get a little bit better in that blocking area to be the type of fullback who will consistently be the guy that we need in the running game,” Shanahan said. “But his receiving skills are Pro Bowl material.”
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ROYAL RETURN: Another rookie, receiver Eddie Royal, made some noise of his own against the Dolphins, returning a kickoff 95 yards in the first quarter that set up Denver’s first touchdown.
But the play was marred by the loss, and Royal’s inability to finish the return in the end zone. It was the longest non-scoring kickoff return in Broncos history.
“It’s nice to make a play like that, but you have to finish it off,” he said.
Royal also caught seven passes for 69 yards and a touchdown.
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Associated Press freelancer William Wilson compiled this report.
