First-year Denver Broncos head coach Sean Payton knows there is a silver lining in wide receiver Tim Patrick's season-ending torn Achilles injury.

Payton comforted the beleaguered wideout earlier this week. The latter told Patrick he's confident he will fully recover from his injury, per NFL.com's Nick Shook.

“Spoke to him last night. Of course, he's disappointed. My understanding was (it happened) a year ago almost to the day. I think the hard thing, and I said it yesterday, is for a player that's spent most of his offseason rehabbing, and all of a sudden to hit another roadblock,” Payton said.

“He sounded better last night. He's tough-minded. He's a real good leader. And the good news is it's a clean injury that's better than likely 100 percent recovery. It's pretty clean, relative, the type of surgery he's gonna have. I don't have a date yet when that's gonna take place, but that's where we're at there,” Payton added.

Tim Patrick's career in the Sean Payton era starts on a sour note

Sometimes, you have to take two steps backward so you can take a huge step forward. That's exactly what has happened to Broncos wideout Tim Patrick.

Patrick sustained a season-ending ACL injury during Broncos practice on August 3, 2022. Prior to that misfortune, Patrick enjoyed the two finest seasons of his NFL career.

Patrick hauled in a combined 1,476 receiving yards and 11 touchdowns on 104 receptions from 2020 to 2021. Despite his emergence, the Broncos averaged just six wins during that two-year time frame. Consequently, Denver extended its postseason drought to six years.

Tim Patrick was ready to take the field in 2023 when another tragedy blindsided him without warning.

Broncos medical staff carted Patrick off the field after he suffered an apparent Achilles injury earlier this week. Patrick throwing his helmet in disgust was a clear sign the non-contact injury was serious.

Denver's wide receivers corps became more decimated when team physicians ruled out KJ Hamler due to a heart condition. The Broncos signed Nick Williams to offset the losses of Patrick and Hamler on Tuesday.

Their health issues are a major blow to a Broncos team that struggled on offense last season. Despite having nine-time Pro Bowler Russell Wilson under center, Denver's 16.9 points per game ranked dead-last in the NFL in 2022.