Never mind Kyle Orton’s finger. Or Knowshon Moreno’s knee. Or Jabar Gaffney’s thumb.
The player who may have the toughest injury to overcome in order to play Sunday at Cincinnati is right guard Chris Kuper.
A blocker tough enough to play the final two games of last season with a broken left hand, Kuper has been laboring to overcome a severely sprained right ankle.
At risk is the blocker streak — all five Broncos’ offensive linemen started all 16 games last season.
“I don’t think about keeping a streak alive,” Kuper said. “It’s more getting ready for the game. I’m working hard to get there.”
If Kuper can’t go, the Broncos are expected to start veteran Russ Hochstein, who was recently acquired from New England, or rookie Seth Olsen.
Bumped.
Whether Brandon Marshall has officially lost his starting receiver position won’t be known until Sunday.
But he has been replaced at the podium.
In what is not exactly considered the biggest upset since Super Bowl XXXII, the Broncos have decided Brian Dawkins is more worthy than Marshall of a weekly news conference.
Last year, Jay Cutler had his weekly news conference on Wednesday, which is customary for all NFL starting quarterbacks. But Marshall had his own weekly news conference on Thursday.
No more. Marshall has yet to address the media since the team lifted his nine-day suspension Sunday. Both Orton, the Broncos’ projected starting quarterback, and Dawkins, a seven-time Pro Bowl safety, represented the players in the media room Wednesday.
Marshall to play.
Across the vast land of fantasy football, all anybody wants to know about Marshall is a projection of his first-week stats.
It would seem not much should be expected, because Marshall missed the entire offseason because of hip surgery and the preseason for a variety of issues. But the forecast for a humid 80 degrees in Cincinnati could play in Marshall’s favor.
“We’re going to use a lot of people,” Broncos coach Josh McDaniels said. “It’s going to be hot. It’s the first time that all these guys will play four quarters’ worth of football. And we’re going to try to roll in every guy that’s available. How many plays one guy plays versus another, I’m not really sure. We don’t necessarily have a preset plan. But he should be out there a bunch and contribute a bunch also.”
Lottery partner.
Most sponsors don’t generate a memo. The Broncos’ new business partnership with the Colorado Lottery will get its own news conference.
The deal has been expected since the spring when NFL commissioner Roger Goodell loosened the league’s lottery restrictions. Previously, state lotteries fell under the league’s gambling prohibition umbrella.
The Broncos are the latest of several teams that have hooked up with a state lottery. What this means is the Broncos can place their logos on lottery tickets.
Teams are also allowed to sell advertising on their practice jerseys, but the Broncos have yet to complete such a deal.
A news conference to announce the state lottery partnership will be held Monday morning at the Broncos’ headquarters.
