For the third time during his brief tenure with the Broncos, Wes Welker has suffered a concussion.
Welker took a hard hit to the helmet from Texans safety D.J. Swearinger during Saturday night’s preseason game, drawing a 15-yard penalty. Welker immediately left the game and the Broncos confirmed afterward that he had suffered a concussion.
The 33-year-old Welker also suffered two concussions last season, one in Week 11 and one in Week 14. This is the third concussion Welker has suffered in his last 10 games.
Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning threw a touchdown pass to Emmanuel Sanders on the next play and immediately got in Swearinger’s face, drawing a 15-yard taunting penalty. Manning said afterward that he went after Swearinger because he was concerned about Welker. For his part, Swearinger does not think he deserved to be penalized.
“I led with my shoulder. That’s the only thing I could do. He’s a short guy,” Swearinger said. “There are some fine lines with hits. I could have tried to go low, but he ducked his head.”
Welker will go through the NFL’s normal concussion protocol, and there will be no word any time soon on whether he can play in the Broncos’ regular-season opener in two weeks.