ESPN AFC West Blog

Posted by ESPN.com's Bill Williamson

Englewood, Co. -- I stopped by the Broncos facility today. Here are some observations and notes:

• It appears the Denver starters will not play Friday in the final preseson game. A few players mentioned that it will likely be a night for the backups to shine Friday in Arizona. This is no surprise. Mike Shanahan usually gives nearly all of his starters the final game off. Next up for the Denver starters is opening night Sept. 8 at Oakland on Monday Night Football.

• Star receiver Brandon Marshall was back at the facility Wednesday after spending Tuesday in New York making his appeal to cut down his three-game NFL suspension. He should find out the result of his appeal in the coming days.

• Left cornerback Champ Bailey was raving about third-year quarterback Jay Cutler: "You should see the things he's doing on the field. I can't say how much he has improved from this time last season."

• There is chatter that free agent pickup Keary Colbert is on the bubble to make the 53-man roster Saturday. Colbert hasn't been great in the preseason and in training camp. Yet, he was signed to be the No. 2 receiver in the spring. Yet, several weeks later, Denver drafted Eddie Royal from Virginia Tech in the second round and Royal has burst onto the scene. He is now the No. 2 receiver. Veteran Brandon Stokley is entrenched as the No. 3 receiver and Darrell Jackson is the No. 4 receiver. Glenn Martinez has a chance to stick as a returner. The team drafted Royal to be a return man as a rookie but with him now the No. 2 receiver, Martinez may be needed. So, yes, it seems Colbert could be fighting for a roster spot.

• Cornerback Domonique Foxworth weighed in on the topic of cutting down the preseason by a couple of games: "I don't see it. The owners make a lot of money off the preseason. I think it would be a tough sell to the owners but not to the players."