Broncos LB Jonas Griffith Hurt on Second Play of Preseason Game

The Broncos lost one of their defensive starters to injury Saturday in the club’s preseason opener against the Cowboys.

Inside linebacker Jonas Griffith sustained an elbow injury on the second play of Denver’s first series. Griffith, 25, was one of two defensive starters, along with LB Malik Reed, playing in the contest; he walked off the field with trainers and was ruled out shortly thereafter.

Griffith, whose first real playing time came in Denver last season, emerged as a possible long-term fixture at the position following an encouraging end to the 2021 campaign. The promising LB began the year on special teams before landing on injured reserve in September, eventually returning in late October.

Griffith logged 46 tackles (four for loss, two QB hits) and a fumble recovery in 13 total appearances, including four starts in Weeks 15–18. The club extended an exclusive-rights tender to Griffith in April, tabbing the third-year veteran as a projected starter alongside Josey Jewell for the ’22 season.

An undrafted prospect out of Indiana State in 2020, Griffith landed with the Broncos after brief stints with the Colts and 49ers practice squads. He was traded from San Francisco last August along with a ’22 seventh-round pick to Denver in exchange for a ’22 sixth-round pick and a ’23 seventh-round pick.

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