ENGLEWOOD, Colo. -- As the regular-season opener approaches, the Denver Broncos expect to have most of their key contributors healthy and ready to play.
Defensive ends Derek Wolfe (ankle), Jared Crick (back) and Adam Gotsis (shoulder) were all officially listed Thursday as "limited" practice participants. But Broncos coach Vance Joseph said all three players "looked good."
Wolfe and Crick were both injured in mid-August and played just three and 13 plays, respectively, in the preseason. The two, and Gotsis, are expected to play Monday night against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Because of the Monday night opener, the Broncos also had an extra practice day this week. As a result, they gave cornerback Aqib Talib and running back Jamaal Charles a rest day Thursday.
Both will play against the Chargers. Charles' rest day was indicative of how the Broncos may try to regulate his workload.
Charles has played eight games combined in the last two seasons because of multiple knee surgeries. The Broncos believe Charles can contribute as a specialist in their offense but played him in just one preseason game -- 16 plays against the Green Bay Packers.
"We have a plan for Jamaal as far as how we're going to work him the entire year," Joseph said. "Obviously we want him fresh, that's going to be huge for us."
