Boss Bailey optimistic about ankle injury

By Lee Rasizer, Rocky Mountain News (Contact)

Published August 9, 2008 at 10:31 p.m.

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Photo by Dave Einsel/Associated Press

Broncos linebacker Boss Bailey gets a pat from teammate Nate Webster as he's led from the field during Denver's loss to the Texans. “I’m good, I’m cool,” Bailey said. “I don’t think it’s that bad but you don’t know until you get the MRI."

HOUSTON — Boss Bailey emerged from the training room Saturday night wearing a sneaker on his left foot, a sock on the right, two crutches and a look of disappointment.

The Broncos' starting strong-side linebacker suffered a sprained right ankle on the second defensive snap of the preseason in a 19-16 loss to the Houston Texans.

He’ll have a magnetic resonance imaging exam Sunday.

“I’m good, I’m cool,” Bailey said. “I don’t think it’s that bad but you don’t know until you get the MRI. The good thing is, it wasn’t broken on the X-ray, so that’s the positive thing. But I have to wait and see with the MRI to see if there’s any damage in there.”

Coach Mike Shanahan described Bailey’s injury as “pretty bad” as sprains go and that given the swelling, Bailey might miss a couple of weeks.

Bailey, who said it was a lower ankle sprain rather than a high one, was replaced by Louis Green, who injured his neck on the same series and was wearing a neck brace as he took the team flight home. Jamie Winborn finished the first half as the team’s strong-side linebacker.

Bailey was asked whether he felt the regular-season opener might be in jeopardy, given the injury.

“No, I feel good about it,” he responded. “I’m not going to speculate right not but I definitely feel I’ll be ready by then.”

Bailey’s injury occurred on an end-around to Texans receiver Andre Davis. The linebacker was hit on the backside of the play and had to be helped off by two trainers, with Bailey putting no weight on his right leg. He later was carted off to the locker room.

“I was going in my gap and I got cut by the guard,” Bailey said of the play on which he was hurt. “I didn’t go all the way down, and when I was coming up, somebody came over the top of me and my leg got caught up under me as I got twisted around.”

Bailey was playing in his first game with Denver after signing a lucrative free-agent deal with the team this offseason. He said he never has had a similar injury, so he has nothing to which he can compare the pain and swelling he’s experiencing.

“It’s part of the game,” Bailey said. “I’m not going to be too down about it. I’m just rehab hard and try to come back as soon as I can.”

• August 10, 2008

  1:44 p.m.

  Suggest removal

  Dynamicdave writes:

  Get well Boss. We will need your talent in the regular season. Same goes for Louis Green. Get well.

• August 11, 2008

  10:27 a.m.

  Suggest removal

  myerda00 writes:

  Diddo what dynamicdave (another Vegas Bronco) wrote. Lets say Boss has these little issues through-out the year, who is the backup? Green? But he is mainly ST. Webster with Niko at MIKE? Woodyard? Maybe Winborn from weakside?
  WOW!! Boss get and stay healthy.

• August 11, 2008

  11:51 a.m.

  Suggest removal

  bubbabeers writes:

  Why does our team seem to always have injury problems? I know injuries are part of the game but it seems like the Broncos get more than thier fair share. Does anyone else question Shanahans preparation??

• August 11, 2008

  3:23 p.m.

  Suggest removal

  OPETH72 writes:

  Are you serious? Blaming the head coach for injuries? Bailey described the injury pretty descriptively. So, outside of Shanahan actually running out on the field and becoming directly involved in the play, I really see no role he had in this injury. I remember a horrible injury years back. I think it was this guy named Terrell, umm, trying to think of the last name........oh yeah, Davis. Basically a career ending injury that was the outcome of TD making a tackle on a pick that was thrown. I guess that was Shanny's fault as well, because I am sure it was his preparation that caused that ill fated injury. Geez, any reason to call out the coach......................sad and ignorant. It is a violent sport. Injuries happen. If you think the coaching staff is not dedicated to injury prevention, you clearly are not looking at the big picture. Not sure how anyone can overlook that, seeing as how they pay some of these guys top dollar to use their skills for them, an injury is like burning cash. Actually, now that I think about it, the injury is probably in some way linked to the size of Shanny's house. Why not, right?

• August 11, 2008

  6:31 p.m.

  Suggest removal

  Dynamicdave writes:

  OPETH72, well put. The only reason they look at Denver as being injury prone is because they don't read up on the other teams after a game, etc., and read about the injuries that they, also sustained. It happens. These are (for the most part) some pretty big guys, throwing around a lot of weight and muscle. Injuries are going to happen. When Eddie Mac got his leg broke, do you blame Shanahan? It's just freak, bad luck. Get used to it.

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