Broncos' Dumervil, White out for season
ENGLEWOOD • The Denver Broncos’ tailback turnstile keeps on spinning.
LenDale White is out for the season after rupturing his right Achilles’ tendon Thursday night at Minnesota.
And Elvis Dumervil’s season is officially sacked. The Broncos had been holding out hope the league’s top sacker would make a quicker than anticipated recovery from a torn chest muscle and return to action in December.
Dumervil, however, posted a message on his Twitter account Friday night that confirmed an NFL.com report he’ll be going on injured reserve, ending his season.
White will undergo surgery Tuesday, said Chris Brantley, who represents the fifth-year running back.
White spent his first four seasons in Tennessee and joined the Broncos last month as a free agent.
“He’s disappointed, of course, because he put so much time and effort into getting back on the field and getting another opportunity to play the game he loves,” Brantley said Friday. “But he’s been very positive and will get through this fine.”
Brantley said White is confident he can return to the NFL next season: “Of course. LenDale is a very focused individual and he has his mindset on coming back and finishing the business he started.”
White, trying to revive his career with his hometown team after a fallout in Tennessee and a short stay in Seattle, was injured in the second quarter of the 31-24 loss Thursday.
White was signed after Knowshon Moreno (hamstring) and Correll Buckhalter (back) got hurt in camp last month. He had been released this spring by Seattle.
Although he sprained an ankle two days after his arrival in Denver, White had come back strong. He scored twice in the preseason, including a 2-yard run Thursday night against the Vikings before he got hurt on a 9-yard run in the second quarter.
The Broncos were hoping it was just another ankle injury that could heal in September — White was already scheduled to sit out the first four games of the regular season, his punishment for violating the league’s substance-abuse policy.
Now he faces an arduous recovery, and there’s no guarantee he’ll ever get back on the football field.
The Broncos could bring back Justin Fargas, whom they released last week, or scour the waiver wire today when teams must trim rosters to 53 players. Lance Ball capitalized to seemingly nail down a roster spot.
