Pat Surtain II was removed from the Broncos' game on Sunday twice due to injury, first a leg and second a shoulder. He was replaced by rookie Kris Abrams-Draine, who saw decent playing time last year, filling in for Riley Moss due to injury. He stepped straight into the fire on Sunday, taking over for Surtain in coverage against an elite Dallas receiving group. With Surtain now expected to miss a few weeks, all eyes turn to the Denver secondary, and Abrams-Draine specifically.
Losing the reigning Defensive Player of the Year is an impossible pill to swallow for any defensive unit. The Broncos' strengths are in rushing the passer and defending receivers on the back end, and Surtain is instrumental in that. Replacing his performance on the field is impossible, but Abrams-Draine probably presents Denver's best chance at doing that.
The 2024 5th-round selection had mostly seen time as a special teamer so far this year, but saw a healthy dosage of defensive snaps once the game was already out of hand. He's seen just 37 snaps on defense this year, but that doesn't break the confidence that the Broncos have in him. Particularly, the Broncos coaching staff has confidence in Abrams-Draine to support their defense in Surtain's absence.
Sean Payton has confidence in Kris Abrams-Draine in Pat Surtain's absence
The Denver Gazette credited Peyton for stating postgame that “I thought (Abrams-Draine was) pretty good, pretty good... Proud of him. You don’t like to see that happen. You never know when a player goes down. The next man is up.” Payton clearly has a vote of confidence in his young corner, who showed last year that he can step up and contribute down the stretch. If the Broncos are going to miss Surtain for some time after his injury against Dallas, it is clear who their next man up will be.
The Broncos have other options, too. First-round rookie Jahdae Barron has seen roughly 25% of Denver's defensive snaps this year, but was instrumental in their comeback against Philly, and hauled in his first career interception on Sunday. Barron could find his way into Denver's cornerback mix if he outplays Abrams-Draine during any form of a Surtain absence.
The other options for the Broncos would be rotating their corners depending on the matchup. Considering Barron is more of a safety/corner hybrid, he might find himself covering larger receivers, potentially someone like Nico Collins, who lines up at 6'4". This would leave Abrams-Draine against smaller and faster receivers the Broncos may face during Surtains absence. Ultimately, the fact that the Broncos have multiple viable options to go with means the Broncos could navigate the absence of their All-Pro corner without too many issues.