Houston – While several key players’ availability for Saturday night’s preseason opener against the Houston Texans remains in question, a newly injured player’s status is clear.
Left tackle Matt Lepsis will not play after suffering a hamstring pull Wednesday in practice.
Neither coach Mike Shanahan nor Matt Lepsis said he believes the injury is serious. Backup Cornell Green is expected to start Saturday.
“I’ll be back in a few days,” Lepsis said. “It’s real minor.”
Meanwhile, Shanahan said cornerback Champ Bailey and defensive tackle Gerard Warren (hamstrings) are questionable. Neither has made it through a full practice in several days.
Receiver Jerry Rice, who has plantar fasciitis in his left foot, practiced Thursday. He said he will not push the injury and will play only if he feels improvement Saturday night.
Kanell struggles with change
Quarterback Danny Kanell is not going to complain about falling to No. 4 on the Broncos’ depth chart. But it hasn’t been easy for him.
“This has been the biggest professional challenge of my career,” Kanell said of his demotion. “It hasn’t been easy. It’s been a tough week.”
Kanell, the Broncos’ backup quarterback last season despite the fact he didn’t take a snap, was replaced by second-year player Bradlee Van Pelt on Aug. 2. Kanell is third on the depth chart, but second-year player Matt Mauck has been working ahead of him. Kanell probably will play at the end of Saturday night’s game.
Kanell said he thought he was performing well in camp. He had one of the best offseason programs of his career.
“What’s tough is that this was unexpected,” he said.
Cowboy reunion
Darrent Williams and second-year running back Tatum Bell spent time with their former Oklahoma State teammate Vernand Morency this week. Like Williams, Morency is a rookie. He is competing for the starting tailback job with the Texans.
“It’s a lot of fun to hang out with Morency this week,” Bell said. “We’re both competing for a starting job. Me, him and Darrent had fun in college, and it’s good that we’re all starting our NFL careers basically together.”
Defense relishes 3-4 time
The Broncos will face several teams this season that use the 3-4 alignment as their base defense. Thus, the two practice days and preseason game with the Texans, who sport the 3-4, are useful.
“With the 3-4, everything is different – different lanes, different everything,” Broncos receiver Rod Smith said. “We play a lot of 3-4 teams this year, so working against the defense will help us.”
Footnotes
Ebenezer Ekuban, who overtook Marco Coleman at defensive end this week, is expected to start Saturday. Courtney Brown is the starter but will be out about three more weeks with a dislocated elbow. …
Shanahan was pleased the temperatures and humidity hovered in the 90s during the team’s practices with the Texans. “This is exactly what I wanted,” he said. The Broncos expect similar conditions for their season opener at Miami on Sept. 11. …
Broncos general manager Ted Sundquist was thrilled the NFL owners voted to keep the number of practice-squad players at eight instead of five. “It’s huge,” Sundquist said. “It helps set your entire roster, not just the practice squad.” …
Monday’s practice at Dove Valley will be open to the public and starts at 2:45 p.m.
Bill Williamson can be reached at 303-820-5450 or bwilliamson@denverpost.com.
