NFL

Broncos WR Brandon Marshall suffered a potentially severe pull or strain of his hamstring in Wednesday’s practice, according to CBS 4 Denver. The contract-year wideout came up limping at the end of a drill and was holding his right leg as the Denver Broncos medical staff took him to the locker room for evaluation. He did not return to finish out practice. Marshall’s loss would likely be a death blow to the Broncos’ hopes of advancing in the playoffs. He is essentially the only pass catcher Josh McDaniels consistently calls plays for.

Elsewhere around the NFL:

San Francisco: Isaac Bruce stated in a conference call with St. Louis media Wednesday that there’s a “75 percent” change he’ll retire after this year. According to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, “those who know Bruce say it’s closer to 100 percent.” The San Francisco 49ers do plan to let Bruce play in their season finale Sunday against the Rams, with whom Bruce spent nearly his entire career. It will be interesting to see if Bruce makes the Hall of Fame. While he does rank second all-time in receiving yards and fifth all-time in receptions, Bruce made only four Pro Bowls and was never named All Pro.

Miami: Dolphins placed ILB Channing Crowder on injured reserve with a “right foot injury,” ending his season. Early reports out of Miami Dolphins are Crowde suffered a Lisfranc foot fracture, which would jeopardize Crowder’s availability for 2010 training camp. Still only 26 years old, Crowder should be a Dolphin next season. He wraps up the year with a highly disappointing 51 tackles in 13 starts.

Minnesota: Vikings TE Visanthe Shiancoe missed Minnesota Vikings practice Wednesday with a thigh injury. He should be fine for this weekend, but he’s currently listed as questionable.

New York: QB Eli Manning’s foot injury kept him limited in Giants practice Wednesday. He is in no danger of missing the last game against the Vikings.

New York: WR Mario Manningham was held out of Giants practice Wednesday with a shoulder injury. This is the first we’ve heard of any injury so it shouldn’t be too serious. Look for him to start in week 17 against the Vikings.

Green Bay: Packers coach Mike McCarthy says he plans to play his starters and try to win the game on Sunday against Arizona. This goes for Aaron Rodgers, Ryan Grant, Greg Jennings and Donald Driver.

Atlanta: Falcons TE Tony Gonzalez (calf), QB Matt Ryan (toe), and RB Michael Turner (ankle) were all held out of Atlanta Falcons practice Wednesday. Ryan is the most likely of these three to play in Week 17 at Tampa Bay. Gonzalez never returned after straining his calf in the second half of last Sunday’s win, and sitting out practice indicates that the injury is serious. Turner probably should have been shut down for the year sometime ago.