KJ Hamler diagnosed with pericarditis; Broncos will waive him with NFI designation
It has been an awful day for the Broncos receivers room.
Not long after Tim Patrick was carted off with a non-contact injury to his lower left leg that the team fears is a torn Achilles, KJ Hamler announced he was diagnosed with pericarditis. He will step away from football to treat the mild heart irritation, and the Broncos will waive him with a non-football illness designation, Mike Klis of 9News reports.
Hamler is expected to be cleared for football activities sometime in a few weeks, and the procedural move will allow for his return this season. The Broncos are keeping the door open for Hamler to rejoin them, per Klis.
“After feeling some chest pains while working out on the break before camp starter, I got everything checked out and was diagnosed with mild heart irritation, called pericarditis,” Hamler wrote on Instagram. “I’ve got a great treatment plan with medicine and am taking a quick break to get this all taken care of so I can get back to doing what I love. I will be back on the field — better and stronger than ever — as soon as possible this season! I feel great physically and this is very frustrating for me to deal with. I know most of you have heard of or know of my story and these past few years what I’ve been going through on and off the field.
“It’s tough to deal with this when I was ready for a breakout year, but adversity is nothing new to me. I have been through hell and back, but it’s hard to reach paradise if you don’t go through hell first. I’ll get past this just like everything else on this journey. I will continue to elevate. I forever stand on business.
“This is not a farewell. This is not a good-bye. This is a see you soon as I take a break for my health.”
Hamler went on to encourage anyone with chest pains to see a doctor immediately.
A second-round pick in 2020, Hamler has appeared in only 10 games the past two years because of injuries. His 2021 season ended with an ACL tear in Week 3, and he missed the final nine games of last season with a hamstring injury.
Hamler then underwent surgery this offseason for a torn pectoral muscle.
The Broncos have 11 other receivers on the roster, with Jerry Jeudy, Courtland Sutton and rookie second-round pick Marvin Mims at the top of the depth chart.
Source: NBC Sports
