Payton Provides Terse Update About Riley Moss Injury

Denver Broncos coach Sean Payton likes to talk about using preseason games to work his starters and establish a winning culture, but Payton was short on commentary about the consequences that often come with that. 

That was definitely the case with cornerback Riley Moss, who sustained what was described as a “painful” rib injury in Denver’s 33-13 loss to the Green Bay Packers. 

“He’s doing fine,” Payton told reporters regarding Moss in a report from Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk. “I would say it’s nothing serious. We’re being smart. We’ll see as the week progresses where he’s at.”

As Florio points out, Payton is using the fact that teams don’t have the same level of injury reporting obligations during training camp and the preseason. We’re not quite at the "lower body injury vs. upper body" injury report that defines the NHL, but the preseason pushes that boundary, with coaches basically supplying the level of detail they want to fit the situation. 

Patyon also wants to have his cake and eat it in this situation as well, which isn’t exactly atypical. He wants to crack the whip in practice and in the final preseason game against the Seattle Seahawks without having to face the specific consequences, as Moss was having a great camp before he went out. 

The Broncos had some other injuries that were less crucial, and Parker Gabriel of the Denver Post reported on those. One was to backup tackle Frank Crum, who’s become a fan favorite as a (very) occasional receiver, but once again Payton provided no specifics. 

“He’s doing good,” Payton said. “We’ll have a couple of these guys — so far, we’ve had a few injuries that were costly for some players, but hopefully we can get through this next stretch, you know, relatively healthy.”

The rest of the report had center Luke Wattenberg and receiver Marvin Mims Jr. doing team work for the first time after their injuries, with Wattenberg’s injury initially reported as a shoulder injury that became an arm issue, while Mims fell victim to the series of soft tissue issues that plagued the Broncos early in camp as he had hamstring problems. 

The other players who weren’t practicing included linebacker Drew Sanders, center Alex Forsyth and tight end Caleb Lohner, although Lohner was reportedly working on a side field. Meanwhile, the Broncos will push through practice to get ready for their final preseason game this weekend.