ENGLEWOOD, Colo. --Left tackle Ty Sambrailo and right guard Louis Vasquez did not practice as the Broncos began their preparations for the Minnesota Vikings on Wednesday afternoon.

Vasquez received a Wednesday respite, as he did last week. Quarterback Peyton Manning joined him on the sideline as each received a veteran's rest day.

Sambrailo sat out because of a shoulder injury he suffered in the second half Sunday. However, he stayed in the game and has played all 215 offensive snaps this season.

"He's a tough kid," Head Coach Gary Kubiak said. "He knows how important he is to us.

"For a rookie in the National Football League, a starting left tackle, I think he's played really well. He'd be the first one to tell you he's got a really long way to go as a player, and when you play there, you're going to play against the best every week, but I think the Broncos have a bright future because of him."

Kubiak said he hopes Sambrailo will practice Thursday.

"We'll see. He was really sore today, and actually I just told 'Greek' [Head Athletic Trainer Steve Antonopulos] to keep him in[side]," Kubiak said. "It's a day-to-day thing.

"One thing about him: I know he'll be able to play smart, so even though he's a rookie, I'm not that concerned with the reps. We've just got to keep him healthy."

The Broncos did not have a backup tackle active last Sunday in Detroit, opting to deactivate swing tackle Michael Schofield in order to get outside linebacker Lerentee McCray some work.

Had Sambrailo or Ryan Harris been unable to play in Detroit, Head Coach Gary Kubiak had a plan which would have involved some shuffling.

"We have a lot of ways that we could go about it and I won't share that with anybody, but yeah, there was some sticking and moving there on the sideline there for a few minutes," Kubiak said Monday. "We have to move some guys around to survive."

All other Broncos were on the field for Wednesday's practice, including safety Omar Bolden, who has missed the last two games with a neck injury, running back C.J. Anderson, who was evaluated for a possible concussion Sunday but returned, and running back Juwan Thompson, who missed the last two and a half quarters after injuring his neck.

Thompson said after practice that he felt fine, and that his absence in the second half at Detroit was precautionary in nature.

Defensive end Kenny Anunike also continued to practice, and had a full practice workload for the first time since an Aug. 20 knee scope. He was limited last week.

Emergency Room Care/ Denver ERs

HealthONE has 12 full-service emergency departments -- seven at our hospitals and five free-standing ERs. These include a Level I Trauma Center (adult and pediatric) at Swedish Medical Center; Level II Trauma Center at The Medical Center of Aurora; and Level III Trauma Center at Sky Ridge Medical Center. AIRLIFE-DENVER is our air medical transport serving facilities in an eight-state region.

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