Denver coach Sean Payton said that Broncos receiver Josh Reynolds is doing alright but “was pretty shaken up” after being shot last week.
“He’s fortunate,” Payton said. “Obviously the league and the local authorities are handling that. I’ve had a chance to talk with him. He was pretty shaken up, and I’ll leave it at that.”
Reynolds was at practice all week, working on a side field as he heals from a broken finger he got in a game against Las Vegas earlier this month.
He needed surgery, which put him on injured reserve, so he didn’t go with the Broncos to New Orleans for their game on Thursday, Oct. 17.
Reynolds and another man were shot while driving from a strip club in the early morning hours of Oct. 18, around the time his teammates were coming back from their 33-10 win over the Saints that Thursday night.
“First things first, I’m glad he’s OK,” cornerback Pat Surtain II said Friday after clearing the concussion protocol. “Obviously wish him the best on his recovery because situations like that, just him being able to make it out of that situation is a blessing for him and for this organization.
As a whole (team) and everybody involved in this organization, we’re glad he’s OK.”
Left tackle Garett Bolles, who has a locker next to Reynolds, said the team was affected by the shooting and everyone was trying to support him.
“We could have lost a brother. That’s really what it is,” Bolles said. “You know, there’s not time or place for an altercation, especially in this day and age. … Someone trying to take another person’s life is just unacceptable.”
Denver police announced that they have arrested two men — Luis Mendoza, 35, and Burr Charlesworth, 42 — in connection with the shootings, which happened around 3 a.m. on a stretch of Interstate 25 south of downtown.
The men are being held for investigation of attempted first-degree murder and first-degree assault. Police said they are trying to find any additional suspects, so “therefore the arrest reports are sealed to protect the integrity of the investigation.”
NBC affiliate KUSA-TV in Denver reported that Reynolds was shot once in his left arm and once in the back of his head.
Reynolds is in his ninth NFL season and his first with the Broncos after signing a two-year, $9 million contract last offseason. He has played in five games with one start, catching 12 passes for 183 yards and a touchdown.
Before joining Denver, he spent three seasons with Detroit. He has also played for the Titans and the Rams, who picked him in the fourth round of the 2017 NFL draft out of Texas A&M.
