The Denver Broncos plan on giving a number of first-team players a night off in the first preseason game against the Seattle Seahawks, including quarterback Peyton Manning.
Along with Manning, linebackers DeMarcus Ware, Danny Trevathan and Brandon Marshall will be sitting out. The offense won’t be in full strength besides Manning, but running back C.J. Anderson and the starting offensive line (those that are healthy anyway) will be playing in the first quarter of the game.
Obviously, we have some guys with some nicks that have missed some time that we have to make some decisions on. We have a few guys that we’ll talk about that have a lot of birthdays, so we’ll talk about them, too.
This had something to do with the rival, the Seahawks, and the best defense in the league. Manning wasn’t going to get more than a drive anyway, which means about eight to 10 plays at most. Considering his age and how he looked to be struggling physically in the second half of the season, it wasn’t worth the risk of putting him out there.
It’s the first time since joining the Broncos in 2012 that Manning won’t be playing in the preseason opener, but he is scheduled to play against the Houston Texans in week 2 of the preseason. Brock Osweiler, the second round draft pick who still hasn’t started a single game since entering the NFL in 2012, will also have to play without Demaryius Thomas and Owen Daniels on offense.
Cody Latimer and Andre “Bubba” Caldwell are expected to start at receiver while Virgil Green should be the tight end. On the defensive side of players missing the game, Shane Ray (first round rookie), Todd Davis, Steven Johnson and Bradley Roby will be starting instead.