The Sports Xchange

ENGELWOOD, Colo. — One of the biggest questions on the Denver Broncos’ roster heading into the regular season was how Matt Paradis would fare as the starting center after spending his rookie season on the practice squad.

The transition hasn’t been perfect, but Paradis has settled in and looked more comfortable with each passing week, particularly in pass protection and in making the checks and calls at the line of scrimmage.

“I think that it’s very good,” Broncos coach Gary Kubiak said of Paradis’ progress to date. “Let’s remember that he’s six games into a career. We forget about that. I think that he has a bright future.”

Kubiak said during the offseason that he liked Paradis when he scouted him while he was the Baltimore Ravens’ offensive coordinator, so the fact that he stuck on the 53-man roster was no surprise. However, it was a mild upset when he beat out veteran Gino Gradkowski, now with the Atlanta Falcons, for the starting nod.

“They were battling,” Kubiak said. “(Paradis) continued to progress each and every day. It was obvious when he got his opportunities with the starters that he led the group the right way and we were making progress. He earned his keep, so he’s there for a reason.”

But after six games, Kubiak wondered if the team was possibly asking “a little too much” of Paradis.

“We’re asking him to do a lot and, actually, through our course of study during the bye week, we feel like we need to limit some of the things that we’re asking him to do,” Kubiak said. “I think that he has a chance to be a really good player, he’s well on his way and hopefully he continues to get better.”

–Since the start of the regular season, quarterback Peyton Manning has received Wednesday off-days from practice to save him from additional wear and tear. But with the Broncos coming out of the bye, that might change Wednesday.

“We’re going to talk about that today,” Kubiak said. “I would say no, but obviously, he’s had some good rest. We’ll see. I think that he will practice some on Wednesday. How much? I don’t know, we’ll see.”

–Linebacker Brandon Marshall is having a splendid season despite playing with pain in his foot as a result of offseason surgery following a Lisfranc injury. But he still wasn’t happy about having his full sack in Cleveland changed to a half-sack that he shared with outside linebacker Lerentee McCray.

“I was a little upset,” Marshall said. “Lerentee was actually talking to me about that. He was upset. He was like, ‘Man, I got him first.’ I actually got there first, but I fell and I got back up. I was like, ‘Man, you’ve got to take him to the ground. You didn’t take him to the ground.’

“It’s all good. I shared the sack with him. Hopefully I get some more.”

The Broncos have been willing to use Marshall in the pass rush, so he will have opportunities.

NOTES: WR Emmanuel Sanders worked in the individual periods Monday, eight days after injuring his shoulder against the Cleveland Browns. Kubiak expects Sanders to have full participation in practice Wednesday. … LG Evan Mathis practiced for the first time since Oct. 9. Mathis played against the Raiders and Browns, but missed all of the practices in Weeks 6 and 7. … OLB Shane Ray was the only Bronco who did not take part in practice Monday and is expected to miss another two to five weeks because of a sprained MCL suffered against the Browns on Oct. 18. … ILB Corey Nelson practiced Monday after sitting out last Tuesday’s work because of ankle and knee injuries suffered during his work on special teams. … OLB DeMarcus Ware practiced for the first time since suffering back spasms in Oakland on Oct. 11. Ware took part in the individual periods of Monday’s practice and is on track to play against the Packers.