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The Broncos knew a suspension for WR Brandon Marshall was coming, but the severe elbow injury suffered by rookie RB Ryan Torain was an unpleasant surprise. Marshall will be out for at least two games, perhaps three, with his suspension, which was officially issued on Wednesday, and Torain is expected to miss the next three months after he suffered a dislocated left elbow and ligament damage the same day. The absence of those two key performers will significantly change Denver’s game plan for the first few weeks of the season and should make it more conservative, sources say. Although Mike Shanahan has a knack for creating and exploiting mismatches, he’ll have a harder time doing that now that Marshall, whose versatility is truly irreplaceable, will miss key games against the Raiders and Chargers. Marshall is one of the few dynamic playmakers on the Broncos’ offense, but the loss of Torain, a fifth-round pick, was more of a shock to the system since it was unexpected and will linger for a much longer period. Although he was ranked third on the depth chart, word is Torain had the inside track on becoming Denver’s short-yardage back. Shanahan had extremely high expectations for Torain and we hear he recently compared Torain to a young Terrell Davis.
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