Broncos lose Alex Singleton to season-ending ACL injury

WHITE SULPHUR SPRINGS, W.Va. — There are injuries and there are devastating heartbreaks.

The Broncos have lost their leading tackler Alex Singleton for the rest of the season as the star inside linebacker suffered a torn ACL, head coach Sean Payton said Wednesday.

Here’s a remarkable testament to Singleton’s courage and toughness: Singleton suffered the injury during the second defensive series in the first quarter of the Broncos’ 26-7 win Sunday at Tampa Bay, a source told 9NEWS. Yet he stayed in to play all 57 snaps and finished with a team-most 10 tackles. It was the 34th time since the start of the 2020 season that Singleton had at least 10 tackles in a game, second-most in the league.

Alas, there will be no more double-digit tackle games for Singleton this year.

It was a non-contact injury on a Raymond James Stadium playing field that was not in the best shape after the 8th-ranked Miami Hurricanes crushed the South Florida Bulls, 50-15, the night before in a Saturday college game.

Singleton, 30, was undrafted out of Montana State in 2015. After he was cut by three teams (Seattle, New England and Minnesota) in his rookie season without playing in a game, he was drafted by the Calgary Stampeders in the first round of the 2016 Canadian Football League draft. He played three years for Calgary before the Philadelphia Eagles gave him another shot in the NFL in 2019.

Singleton had 120 and 137 tackles for the Eagles in 2020 and ‘21, became a free agent and signed a one-year deal with the Broncos. He led the team in 2022 with 163 tackles, which earned him a three-year, $18 million contract extension. Unfazed by his new riches, Singleton recorded an astounding 177 tackles for the Broncos last season and was leading the team this season with 31 stops in three games.

Singleton knew as the game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers played on that something wasn’t right with his knee but he waited until after the game to tell his coaches and medical personnel. A tough customer who nevertheless will soon undergo reconstructive surgery.

It’s unclear who will get the first chance to replace the irreplaceable Singleton. Cody Barton starts at the other inside linebacker position and may move over to take Singleton’s position, which has the green dot on his helmet as the player who relays the defensive play calls from coordinator Vance Joseph to the huddle. The Broncos also have veterans Justin Strnad and Kristian Welch as backup inside linebackers, although they have primarily been special team players in recent years. The Broncos also have undrafted rookie linebacker Levelle Bailey on their practice squad and added two quality veterans, Kwon Alexander and Zach Cunningham to their practice squad.

Alexander was brought in to the Broncos’ Greenbrier Resort practice fields Tuesday for a workout. Alexander is coming off a torn Achilles injury suffered last November.

Cunnigham, 27, is a seven-year NFL starter who had 107, 142 and 164 tackles for the Houston Texans from 2018-2020.

Another candidate to replace Singleton, Jonas Griffith, suffered a torn ACL in the Broncos’ final preseason game last month, the second time in a year he suffered the injury to the same knee ligament.

That’s two ACL injuries to the Broncos’ top three inside linebackers. The Broncos will practice Wednesday, Thursday and Friday here at the Greenbrier Resort, then fly Friday afternoon to New Jersey, where they will play the New York Jets on Sunday (11 a.m. MDT) kickoff at MetLife Stadium.