ENGLEWOOD, Colo. (AP) — Denver coach Sean Payton said Broncos receiver Josh Reynolds is OK but “pretty shaken up” after being shot last week.
“He’s lucky,” Payton said. “Obviously the league and local authorities are looking after it. I had the opportunity to speak with him. He was pretty shaken up, and I’ll leave it at that.
Reynolds was in practice all week and working on the sideline as he recovered from a broken finger he suffered in a game against Las Vegas earlier this month.
He required surgery, which placed him on injured reserve, and is why Reynolds did not accompany the Broncos to New Orleans for their game on Thursday, October 17.
Reynolds and another man were shot as they left a strip club early on the morning of Oct. 18, around the time his teammates were returning from their 33-10 victory over the Saints on a Thursday night.
“First of all, I’m glad he’s OK,” cornerback Pat Surtain II said Friday after clearing the concussion protocol. “Obviously, I wish him the best in his recovery, because in situations like this, just the fact that he can come out of it is a blessing for him and for this organization. As a whole (the team) and everyone involved in this organization, we’re happy he’s OK.”
Left tackle Garett Bolles, who has a locker next to Reynolds, said the team was shaken by the shooting and everyone was trying to support him.
“We could have lost a brother. That’s really what it’s about,” Bolles said. “You know, there’s no time or place for an altercation, especially in this day and age. … Someone trying to kill someone else is simply unacceptable.”
Denver police said they arrested two men — Luis Mendoza, 35, and Burr Charlesworth, 42 — in connection with the shooting that occurred around 3 a.m. along a stretch of Interstate 25 south of downtown.
The men were being held in connection with an investigation into attempted first-degree murder and first-degree assault. Police said they are trying to identify possible additional suspects and “as a result, arrest reports are sealed to protect the integrity of the investigation.”
NBC affiliate KUSA-TV in Denver, said Reynolds was shot once in the left arm and once in the back of the head.
Reynolds is in his ninth NFL season and first in Denver after signing a two-year, $9 million contract last offseason. He played in five games with one start and caught 12 passes for 183 yards and a touchdown.
He spent the previous three seasons with Detroit. He also played for the Titans and Rams, who selected him in the fourth round of the 2017 NFL Draft out of Texas A&M.
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