Peyton Manning last played in a game 29 days ago. He hasn’t participated in a team practice since leaving the loss against the Kansas City Chiefs with torn plantar fascia in his left foot. Following the Broncos’ most disappointing home loss in years, Manning’s status became a focal point on Monday.
“Nothing has changed,” coach Gary Kubiak said.
Brock Osweiler enters the week as the starter for the fifth consecutive game, but Manning continues to make progress. Kubiak will talk with Manning and trainer Steve Antonopulos over the next two days, mapping out a plan for this week. There remains a chance Manning could practice.
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“I have to see where he is,” Kubiak said of Manning. “We have to talk through his situation. We went through a good week, and gave him the weekend off. We’ll have a plan in place on Wednesday, and kind of take it one day at at time.”
Manning watched and advised from the sideline during Sunday’s 15-12 loss to the Oakland Raiders at Sports Authority Field. He held a playsheet and listened to the calls through an earpiece. It capped a week of progress as he threw multiple times in the morning and performed light drill work.
In previous weeks, Kubiak ruled Manning out on Monday. This week was different for two reasons: Kubiak had yet to talk with Manning when he met with the media, and Manning is moving forward in his recovery.
With Manning sidelined, Osweiler boasts a 3-1 record as the starter. He reached career highs on Sunday in completions (35), attempts (51) and yards (308). However, the Broncos haven’t scored a touchdown in 23 consecutive possessions over the past two games, and Osweiler has been sacked 17 times in 18 quarters.
“He held the ball a little bit trying to get the ball down the field because they played us very conservatively, made us check the ball down, didn’t blitz us, didn’t come after us,” Kubiak said. “I think he was 22-of-29 at halftime. That’s operating. That’s doing your job. Then maybe he pressed a little bit in the third quarter, he missed a couple plays, but he also gave us some great chances.”
Over the past month, Manning has gone from a walking cast to a boot, to eschewing both, to go through light drill work. Practice is the next step if his foot checks out.
“If you’re coming back to practice, then you’re working toward getting back on the field and playing,” Kubiak said. “We will see where we are at.”
Troy E. Renck: , trenck@denverpost.com or @troyrenck
