Broncos’ Fannin, Leonhard face injury woes

Running back Mario Fannin will miss his second consecutive season. (BroncoTalk.net)

For the second consecutive year, running back Mario Fannin will miss the entire preseason — and regular season.  Fannin, who missed all of last season with a knee injury, tore his Achilles tendon during practice on Saturday evening, according to the Denver Post.

Fannin is expected to be placed on the injured reserve list by the team.  Fellow backs Knowshon Moreno, Lance Ball and Jeremiah Johnson will compete for the remaining spots on the roster not occupied by Willis McGahee and Ronnie Hillman. If the Broncos keep fullback Chris Gronkowski, they’ll likely keep just three RBs, leaving Moreno, Ball and Johnson to compete for one spot.

The Broncos will release their first depth chart of 2012 on Monday.  It will be interesting to see how the running backs stack up.

Meanwhile, safety Jim Leonhard—who signed a one-year contract with the Broncos on Saturday—has been placed on the team’s active physically unable to perform (PUP) list, per the ‘Post.  While on the list, Leonhard counts against the Broncos’ roster but cannot participate in practices or preseason games until he is cleared.  Leonhard is still rehabbing from a knee injury he suffered last December in New York.

That’s a really tough break for Fannin.  Here’s hoping his career doesn’t end before it has a chance to begin.