Montee Ball Placed on Injured Reserve by Broncos with Groin Injury

A frustrating season is officially over for Denver Broncos running back Montee Ball. He was placed on injured reserve due to a groin injury he wasn't able to shake. The Broncos announced the move:

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The Broncos made four roster moves on Saturday, including moving Danny Trevathan to the active roster and Montee Ball and Quinton Carter to injured reserve.

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Mike Klis of the Denver Post reports the Broncos needed to open two roster spots ahead of their Week 15 clash with the San Diego Chargers. As a result, Ball was one of the players moved to IR:

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Montee Ball entered this season with hopes of emerging as one of the NFL's elite running backs.

It ended in an injury-riddled disaster. Needing two roster spots to clear room for linebacker Danny Trevathan on the 53-man roster and tight end Dominique Jones on the practice squad, the Broncos placed Ball and safety Quinton Carter on season-ending injured reserved.

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Ball was expected to take on a workhorse role for Denver following the offseason departure of Knowshon Moreno. It never materialized that way. After a preseason appendectomy and lingering groin issues, he became an afterthought in the high-powered offense.

That's mostly because of the emergence of C.J. Anderson. The second-year player out of Cal been on fire in recent weeks, taking on an every-down role and excelling. It left Ball without a clear path to return, even if he did get healthy ahead of the playoffs.

He finishes the season with less than 200 yards rushing and just one touchdown.

Ball remains under contract for two more years. So as long as he can get back to full strength, he should have an opportunity to fight for his spot back next season.