ENGLEWOOD, Colo. --OLB DeMarcus Ware returned to practice for the first time since suffering back spasms against Oakland on Oct. 15 as the Broncos returned to practice after their Week 7 bye.
"He looked like his old self moving around," Head Coach Gary Kubiak said after he watched Ware take part in individual drills during the late-morning session.
"I know the extra time this week will do him some good. It's good to have him back."
WR Emmanuel Sanders (shoulder), RB Juwan Thompson (hamstring) and ILB Corey Nelson (knee and ankle injuries) were also on the field as the undefeated Broncos began their preparations for next Sunday's clash against the spotless Packers.
Sanders worked "about half the practice," Kubiak said, with his work primarily in the individual periods, which comprised approximately half of the 90-minute session. Kubiak said he expects Sanders to have a full practice workload Wednesday.
LG Evan Mathis also had his helmet on for practice for the first time since the Oct. 9 session before the Week 5 win at Oakland. Mathis did not practice in the week before the 26-23 overtime win at Cleveland and was held out of last Tuesday's practice prior to the bye week because of a hamstring issue.
"Everybody [on the offensive line] took the full practice," Kubiak said. That included left tackle Ty Sambrailo, who saw some team work last Tuesday but was limited to individual periods the week before as he recovered from a shoulder injury suffered Sept. 27 at Detroit.
After a week of relaxing with their bye, the Broncos returned to the practice field to prepare for Sunday's game against Green Bay.
"Ty was full speed," Kubiak said. "It's a big test coming for him when we put the pads on for our normal Thursday [practice]. We're pretty much back to full speed today."
Sambrailo will start if he's ready, Kubiak said, but the extent of his work Sunday will be determined by how he fares in the next few days.
"It's a big week of practice for him," Kubiak said.
With Sambrailo, Mathis and Louis Vasquez all expected to practice throughout the week, Kubiak hopes that the line can find more cohesion than it has had in recent weeks, with injuries forcing mid-week shuffles up front.
"This is the first week in about a month that we actually start the week with them all in place," Kubiak said. "Evan looks good coming off the break; that was important. Lou looks better coming off the break, so hopefully we'll get a full week out of all of them as we prepare for this one."
OLB Shane Ray was the only Broncos player not on the field. He is recovering from a sprained medial collateral ligament.
Emergency Room Care/ Denver ERs
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