Warriors half Tanah Boyd suffered a suspected ACL injury before his teammates rallied to overpower an ill-disciplined Brisbane 42-12.
The star playmaker went down in the seventh minute of play on Sunday afternoon at Magic Round while in possession.
His right knee was tested by a Warriors medic and he limped off, amid fears for the worst.
In Fox League commentary Cooper Cronk said the situation had all the hallmarks of "an ACL test".
Boyd was replaced at Suncorp Stadium by former Broncos playmaker Te Maire Martin.
The second-placed Warriors were too big, too strong and too smart and four first-half tries to Dallin Watene-Zelezniak, Erin Clark, Wayde Egan and Kurt Capewell gave them a 22-0 lead.
Hooker Egan is in the mix for NSW and his scheming display enhanced his chances.
Prop Jackson Ford continued his stellar form to edge closer to a Blues debut.
Broncos fullback Reece Walsh was underwhelming before he went off for an HIA, which he passed, and appears to not have done enough to dislodge Queensland incumbent Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow from the No.1 position.
The Broncos lost lock Pat Carrigan to the sin bin for repeated infringements in the first half. and Warriors winger Alofiana Khan-Pereira was also binned for a high shot on Jesse Arthars.
Brisbane hit back inside two minutes of the second half, with captain Adam Reynolds starting and finishing a sweeping movement to score the first of his two tries.
Another Broncos error gifted Ali Leiataua a try under the sticks, and any hope of a comeback was snuffed out when an Egan dart sent Martin over and the rout escalated.
Boyd has been a catalyst for the Warriors' surge to second on the NRL ladder.
He recently re-signed until the end of 2029, which led to fellow half Luke Metcalf joining St George Illawarra from next year on a three-year deal.
Warriors halves have suffered serious injuries in consecutive seasons against the Broncos.
Last year, Metcalf ruptured an ACL in the round 17 clash against the Broncos, also at Suncorp Stadium.
It was Metcalf's absence at the start of this season that enabled Boyd to assert himself as the chief No.7 at the Warriors.
Metcalf, who had been given a break while determining his future, will now have to battle with Martin to replace Boyd in the weeks ahead.
Broncos winger Phil Coates had a mixed night on debut but did a great job to leap high to catch a Walsh bullet pass and set up Reynolds.
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