DENVER — Jerry Jeudy, out with a ribs injury.

Ouch.

Pat Surtain II, out with a left shoulder injury.

Double ouch.

The Broncos were left shrugging their shoulders after back-to-back first-round draft picks were forced to exit Sunday’s 16-9 win over the Houston Texans at Empower Field at Mile High.

As for the extent of the injuries, Nathaniel Hackett said he would “find out more” on Monday and, perhaps, if Jeudy and Surtain will be available for a Sunday Night Football contest against the 49ers.

The Broncos are ill-suited to sustain more losses at wide receiver or in the secondary. They were already missing pass-catchers Tim Patrick, who is out for the season, and KJ Hamler, who played limited snaps in the opener. And safety Justin Simmons is sidelined for at least three more weeks.

Hackett, who calls offensive plays, said the Jeudy injury shook up the team’s plan on offense.

“Losing him, that kind of stymied us a bit,” Hackett said.

In Jeudy’s absence, quarterback Russell Wilson turned his attention in Courtland Sutton’s direction. Sutton had seven catches (on 11 targets) for 122 yards.

“Courtland was so big for us,” Wilson said.

The Broncos defense made up for the absence of Surtain, who quickly has turned into arguably the team’s best player. Defensive lineman Dre’mont Jones said the defense had to “nut up a little bit” as the Broncos offense struggled and key players had to leave the game.

“The offense is going to pick it up,” Jones said.

Gregory shines at Mile High

New Broncos outside linebacker Randy Gregory had a great debut at Empower Field at Mile High Sunday, totaling three tackles and a sack. 

“Randy had a smile on his face all day,” Hackett said. “He was fired up ready to go. He came off a couple times, got his wind back, went right back out there and I thought he was definitely a threat to the quarterback.”

The Broncos signed Gregory to a five-year, $70 million contract this offseason from the Cowboys in hopes of him boosting their pass-rushing efforts alongside Bradley Chubb. So far, the two have combined for three sacks and three forced fumbles. 

“We are really competitive,” Gregory said. “I think a lot of guys want to meet at the quarterback. That is kind of something we talked about, beating the other guy to quarterback and turn it kind of a little internal competition. I think more guys have that mentality, better job we can do getting to the quarterback.”

Williams leads ground game

Broncos running back Javonte Williams was Denver’s leading rusher Sunday, totaling 75 yards on 15 carries. Melvin Gordon also had 47 yards on 10 carries, with the Broncos rushing for 149 yards. 

The ground game was one of the few things working for Denver’s offense, as they continue to work out the kinks. 

“Just cleaning up the small details like timing and not getting too rattled in big moments,” Williams said. “We have to keep a level head and not get too high or too low. I feel like that’s just going to come with time and more reps, but I thought we were making progress.”