The Broncos have nine days to get ready for their Week One game against the Ravens. One of their defensive starters who has been injured says he’ll be ready to go.
On Tuesday, defensive end Derek Wolfe returned to practice, less than two weeks after suffering a neck injury that caused him to leave a preseason game by ambulance.
“It feels really good,” Wolfe told reporters, via quotes distributed by the team. “I thought I was going to be out a little bit longer but I started better and every day it was getting better.”
Wolfe says that, barring re-injury, he’ll play on opening night.
“Absolutely, there is no question that I’ll [play], as long as nothing happens in practice, knock on wood,” said Wolfe, a second-round pick in 2012. “Don’t want to get hurt in practice but as long as I don’t re-injure it I should be fine.”
Wolfe said that, when he play, he won’t play any differently.
“Not me,” Wolfe said. “I think if anything when you have to sit out, it’s funny how much you really don’t like to practice until you can’t do it anymore. And then you’re just dying to get out there again. That whole time you’re just thinking I could have been done for good but now that I’m not I want to get out there bad. Once you’re playing football you don’t think about getting hurt and if you do you’re going to get hurt.”
Wolfe did get hurt, but not nearly as badly as initially feared. And that’s great news for a team that won’t have defensive end Elvis Dumervil or linebacker Von Miller or, quite possibly, cornerback Champ Bailey when the real games begin.