The Broncos officially ruled out cornerback Pat Surtain II (pectoral) for Sunday’s game against the Texans.
The team did not place Surtain on injured reserve, hoping he can return at least by Week 13 after the off week.
Surtain is the reigning defensive player of the year.
The Broncos also ruled out wide receiver Marvin Mims Jr. (concussion), tight end Nate Adkins (knee) and safety P.J. Locke (neck) for this week.
Surtain, Mims and Adkins did not practice this week, while Locke was limited on Wednesday and Thursday before not practicing on Friday.
Linebacker Dre Greenlaw (quad) does not have an injury designation.
The Texans are set to have wide receivers Nico Collins and Christian Kirk back in the lineup for Sunday’s game against the Broncos.
Collins missed last Sunday’s win over the 49ers with a concussion and Kirk has missed two games with a hamstring injury, but neither player has an injury designation for this weekend.
Running back Woody Marks is also set to play. Marks was limited with a calf injury on Thursday, but returned to full practice on Friday.
The Texans will not activate cornerback Alijah Huzzie (knee) this week. Fullback Jakob Johnson (hamstring), tight end Dalton Schultz (knee, shoulder), defensive lineman Dylan Horton (knee), and defensive lineman Denico Autry (knee) are listed as questionable.
Running back Woody Marks was added to the Texans’ injury report for Thursday’s practice.
Marks was listed as a limited participant due to a calf injury. Defensive ends Denico Autry (knee) and Dylan Horton (knee) were also added with limited designations.
The status of all three players will be updated on Friday and Marks’ absence would be a blow to the team’s offensive backfield for Sunday’s game against the Broncos.
Wide receiver Nico Collins (concussion), wide receiver Christian Kirk (hamstring), fullback Jakob Johnson (hamstring), and safety Jalen Pitre (foot) were all upgraded from limited to full participation. Wide receiver Braxton Berrios (chest) remained limited and tight end Dalton Schultz (knee, shoulder) was the only player out of practice.
Thwarted in their efforts to add a tight end via waivers (twice), the Denver Broncos had to find a free agent at the position.
They found one in 41-year-old Marcedes Lewis.
“You kind of follow his career, and I knew he’d been training, I knew he’s in great shape,” coach Sean Payton told reporters on Wednesday regarding the decision to add the 2006 first-rounder. “He’s a tremendous blocker. . . . So we brought him in for a workout, brought him on to our practice squad. I’m glad he’s here. He’s a tremendous leader. . . . He had been in the league long enough where the reports have just been unbelievable anywhere he’s been. Jacksonville, Green Bay, Chicago. It’s good to have him here.”
Payton recognized the unusual nature of a position player having a 20-year NFL career.
“I think he’s obsessed with taking care of himself,” Payton said. “That has a lot to do with it. I had checked on a mutual friend. He’s been training two times a day and then you can see that he’s in shape.”
If Lewis plays for the Broncos on Sunday against the Texans, he’ll be going against a team coached by DeMeco Ryans, another first-round pick from the class of 2006.
“I think when he’s 55, he’s going to be able to block the D-gap,” Payton said of Lewis. “We used to say that about Vinny Testaverde, like when he’s 60, he’s still going to throw a pretty ball. I just think that all the other things that come with him are assets for our team.”
The team is otherwise doing very well, at 6-2. The Lewis signing addresses one of the Broncos’ few glaring needs.
Texans starting wide receivers Nico Collins and Christian Kirk were back at practice on Wednesday. Both were limited.
The Texans won without Collins and Kirk on Sunday, beating the 49ers.
Collins remains in concussion protocol after missing Sunday’s game, but coach DeMeco Ryans expressed confidence in Collins’ availability for this week.
Kirk missed the first two games with his hamstring injury, returned for Weeks 3-5 and has missed the past two games after re-injuring it. He has only 10 catches for 109 yards.
“If Nico and Kirk clears, we’re hoping that looks great for us,” Ryans said, via Aaron Wilson of KPRC. “We got two of our top playmakers back out on the field. Anytime we can get those guys out, they add an explosive element to our offense, playmaker element to our offense.
“Those guys have done it for a long time. We’re excited to be able to get those guys back. We’re hoping the week goes as good as it can go so we can get them back.”
Tight end Dalton Schultz (knee/shoulder), defensive end Denico Autry (knee), defensive end Dylan Horton (knee) and offensive guard Laken Tomlinson (rest) did not practice on Wednesday.
Wide receiver Braxton Berrios (chest), fullback Jakob Johnson (hamstring) and safety Jalen Pitre (foot) were limited.
