Broncos’ Montee Ball to have appendectomy Monday

The Denver Broncos will likely be without running back Montee Ball for the remainder of their training camp following today’s news from Adam Schefter via Twitter. The running back is reportedly going to have an appendectomy Monday, but is expected to be ready for the regular season opener.

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Ball will be the Broncos’ featured back in 2014, so it’s likely that they will make sure Ball is fully recovered before allowing him back on the practice field. Appendectomy recovery is usually quick but with Ball being the only feature-ready back on the Broncos roster, Ball could be eased back into playing.

Running backs Ronnie Hillman and C.J. Anderson will continue their competition for the back-up role, but it should get more interesting given the fact that both players will see first unit reps while Ball recovers.

In 2013 Ball platooned with then featured running back Knowshon Moreno who rushed for over 1,000 yards in the pass happy offense. Ball posted 559 yards on 120 carries for a 4.7 yards per carry average. The Broncos saw enough in their 2nd round draft pick to allow Moreno to leave via free agency.

The Broncos are thin at running back behind Anderson and Hillman but the news of the surgery is far from serious. It would seem that Ball will get cleared in a week or two and might see some action in the team third or fourth pre-season game, but the team will likely take a cautious approach to his return.