Broncos John Fox still in ICU, in “good spirits”

Denver Broncos interim head coach Jack Del Rio had the brief opportunity to talk to the team’s head coach, John Fox today as he recovers from surgery to replace the aortic valve in his heart.  He is still in the Intensive Care Unit as he recovers from surgery.

"Here are the comments Del Rio made to the media about it: “I got to speak with John this morning for about 20 minutes on the phone, he sounded great,” Del Rio said. “He’s still in ICU and his spirits are really good. He was a little tired. Obviously he’s gone through quite a bit, his body has been put through quite a bit.  But he’s in great spirits and he’s healing,” Del Rio said. “We talked for a good bit, he obviously was wanting to talk about the team and how everyone was doing. I told him everybody was doing great and working to make him proud.”"

Fox suffered a dizzy spell during a golf outing in North Carolina during the team’s bye week, which resulted in the proceeding operation.  The surgery and recovery for Fox is expected to keep him out as many as 10 weeks, which unfortunately means that he will be unavailable until the divisional or even the championship round of the playoffs.

In the meantime, Del Rio has head coaching experience and will attempt to keep the 7-1 Broncos heading in the right direction in Fox’s absence.  The Broncos have a ton of talent are in good hands, having Del Rio’s experience to fall back on as well as their quasi-offensive coordinator in Peyton Manning.  The Broncos prepare to go on the road this week as they take on their division rival, the San Diego Chargers who are in the mix for the second wildcard spot.  Obviously, everyone hopes for a speedy recovery without complications for Fox, but the Broncos are in the middle of a potential championship run, so they have to find a way to compartmentalize the situation and focus on their opponents.