Brandon Marshall showed off just enough of his astounding talent to leave Broncos fans wondering how they are going to get along without him.
The preseason has concluded for the Broncos’ first-team offense and it couldn’t have gone better. The new offensive line didn’t allow quarterback Jay Cutler to be sacked. The Broncos were pass-happy in scoring 21 points in their first four offensive series through their first two exhibitions against Houston and Dallas. They ran the ball, and mixed in an acrobatic catch by Marshall, in scoring 17 points with only three drives against the Green Bay Packers in their third game.
Preseason encouragement, however, must give way to the frightful reality of the Broncos beginning this season without their freakishly gifted receiver.
First things first: Marshall must get that three-game suspension reduced to two.
This should not be a problem. While officially notifying Marshall of his three-game suspension by letter, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell indicated he would knock off a game if the Broncos’ star receiver met two simple conditions.
Condition No. 1: Marshall had to maintain regular communications with a New York-based, league-appointed counselor. I’m guessing Cutler would have volunteered to put the counselor’s phone number on his own speed dial to make sure this stipulation was satisfied.
The second condition could have gone without typing: Marshall essentially can’t have any more run-ins with the police.
Follow these instructions and Goodell, who has shown greater leniency in his second year after getting his message across as a rookie, will reinstate Marshall on Sept. 15, the first day the Broncos begin preparations for their third game, against the New Orleans Saints at Invesco Field.
That done, the next step is getting the two-game suspension reduced by half. Marshall’s attorney, Harvey Steinberg, will travel to New York some time this week for their official appeal hearing with league officials (Goodell will not be present).
Marshall’s suspension is supposed to start Saturday, so common sense says a ruling on his appeal would be made before then.
The Broncos are a tad more optimistic today than last week that his penalty can be reduced.
The league announced Friday that Packers middle linebacker Nick Barnett had his one-game suspension for a personal-conduct violation reduced to a fine.
Can’t blame the Broncos for seeking a similar bargain. For all the brave talk about having other offensive skill players who can step up and fill the void against Oakland and San Diego, Marshall is a one-of-a-kind.
“We never said we were not going to miss him,” Cutler said. “He makes big play after big play. But we can’t do anything about it. We’ve got to move on. We’ve got to find somebody else.”
But there isn’t anybody else to replicate Marshall.
He made just three plays Friday and they resulted in 10 points. He first caught a buttonhook and, instead of busting tackles from hashmark to hashmark as he often has, Marshall proved he’s coachable by running directly up field for a 22-yard gain. That turned a third-and-9 into an eventual Matt Prater field goal.
Late in the first half, with the offense starting on its own 20, Cutler threw deep to Marshall, who drew a 31-yard pass-interference penalty against cornerback Tramon Williams. On the next play, Marshall used his 6-foot-4, 230-pound frame to ward off the helpless Williams for a bobbling, 49-yard touchdown.
It was the kind of play that generated a double-edged observation: No one can stop Marshall one-on-one.
Except Roger Goodell.
