DENVER (AP) — Bradley Chubb will set foot on a high school field in Jacksonville to take stock of a sore ankle that sidelined him for the season opener.
The Denver Broncos plan to carefully monitor the outside linebacker during a walkthrough Saturday to see if the ankle is ready to take the field for the real deal against the Jaguars. Chubb remains listed as questionable after a third straight day of limited practice time.
It’s been a while — Sept. 29, 2019, to be precise — since Chubb and Von Miller combined forces in a regular season game. Miller missed last season with an ankle injury, and Chubb most of the season before after tearing his ACL.
The reunion of the pass rushing tandem can’t be welcome news for Jaguars rookie QB Trevor Lawrence, who’s going to see a little bit of everything from the Broncos.
“You don’t want to give anybody any one thing,” Broncos defensive coordinator Ed Donatell said of the game plan. “You just know that this guy has the capacity to be very good, and he’s going to be good. We want to try to do everything we can to win this game, at this time, against him.”
Lawrence won’t be the only rookie first-round starter on the field. The Broncos are turning to Pat Surtain II at cornerback after placing Ronald Darby on short-term injured reserve due to a hamstring injury. Surtain has a big believer in Miller.
“He carries himself in a way that it’s not too many things that you would give him advice about,” Miller said. “He pretty much does everything right. He does everything he’s supposed to do. He comes to work early. He’s fast. He’s athletic. He can guard the No. 2 receiver. He can blitz. He can do whatever you want him to do. … He’s going to be a great player in the league.”
Chubb will only add to the dynamic — when he’s ready. The Broncos are taking a cautious approach. After a walkthrough Saturday, Chubb figures to test the ankle again before the game Sunday.
“He did more (Friday), so hopefully he’ll be able to make it,” coach Vic Fangio said. “We’ll see.”
On the offensive side, guard Graham Glasgow is listed as doubtful after having to stay behind in New York for tests on an irregular heartbeat. His replacement would be second-year lineman Netane Muti, who started one game as a rookie and saw action in three other games.
“In the moment we didn’t know how big of an issue it was for (Glasgow), but he’s a tough sucker and until he’s back we’re going miss him,” offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur said. “We don’t know when that’ll be but we’re sure glad he’s OK and we just want to make sure he’s right before we put him back out there. Because what he did was super heroic and I think that our team can learn from that.”
NOTES: LB Jonas Griffith had his back tighten up Thursday in practice. “He’s fine today,” Fangio said. “… DE Shelby Harris (wrist) went through a full practice Friday. … There’s a possibility that G/C Austin Schlottmann could be promoted from the practice squad. … LB Alexander Johnson appreciated Teddy Bridgewater and the offense giving the defense plenty of rest with their ball control. “That’s love right there,” Johnson said. “It does a really big part for keeping the defense fresh, keeping your body fresh, keeping your mind fresh. You can stay on top of your job and play fast and play hard.”
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