ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — Linebacker Alex Singleton, the Denver Broncos' leading tackler and co-captain, underwent surgery for testicular cancer Friday, less than 24 hours after collecting nine tackles in a 10-7 win over the Las Vegas Raiders.
Singleton played in the game four days after learning he had cancer. He'll miss this weekend's showdown against the Kansas City Chiefs (5-4) and is hopeful of returning to action in the coming weeks. The Broncos have a bye after facing the Chiefs.
"Our No. 1 priority is Alex's health and well-being, and we are grateful it appears the cancer was caught early," the Broncos said in a statement on X.
Singleton informed his teammates and coaches during Monday's team meeting that he'd had surgery for testicular cancer, which was diagnosed a week earlier after a routine NFL drug test detected abnormalities.
After telling the team, Singleton spoke with reporters on a conference call. He said he was able to compartmentalize his cancer diagnosis and play against the Raiders just days later because "football's always been an outlet for me."
His nine tackles Thursday night helped the Broncos improve to 8-2 with their seventh straight win.
He had surgery the next morning to remove the tumor, and he said a CT scan showed the cancer hadn't spread.
"The short week honestly made it better," Singleton said. "On Tuesday, Wednesday, I got to fully immerse myself in football and ... get this off of my mind as much as I could because we weren't going to know anything until after the surgery anyway — and still don't 100% know everything.
"So, the biggest thing for me was how to get my mind off it, so football was the best thing to do that. Playing Thursday night here in our throwbacks made me able to block out everything that was going on in my mind."
Singleton said he was thankful for the support he's gotten from his teammates, coaches, management and ownership, saying, "I feel like I'm disappointing them having to miss a game. That's how I feel about it. It's such a shock and such news to me. So, just to have the support and just love from them means so much."
Singleton said he wants to advocate for early screening for testicular cancer now.
"This journey I'm going to continue talking about it and sharing it with you guys and everybody else just knowing that there shouldn't be a big stigma behind it," Singleton said.
"Yeah, we can get the word out to get everybody screened and checked. Don't be afraid of the doctor, because I was for a long time."
Singleton playing a game with the diagnosis hanging over him "doesn't surprise me," said linebacker Justin Strnad, who will fill in for Singleton. "He's the ultimate competitor, ultimate team player. He had the knee (surgery) last year. He's been through a lot in this league and this is obviously a big obstacle, but he's going to overcome it and we're all going to be here to help him through it."
The Broncos are already without star cornerback Pat Surtain II, who's recovering from a strained pectoral muscle and will also miss this weekend's game. Singleton normally wears the green dot on the helmet to communicate with the coaches, so his absence will require several adjustments.
