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(Monday morning update can be seen at the bottom of this post)

DENVER – The Denver Broncos defeated the Indianapolis Colts 34-20 on Sunday, finally getting the proverbial Andrew Luck monkey off of their backs, but the win did not come without a price.

DeMarcus Ware, a 12-year veteran, nine-time Pro-Bowler and four-time first team all-pro, went down in the third quarter with a forearm injury. He was hit on the side, and his entire right arm went limp. After the bruising contest, Head Coach Gary Kubiak revealed the nature of the injury.

“DeMarcus has an ulna fracture. We have to see in the morning exactly what the case is going to be, whether it’s something we think he can play with, or we think it’s something that has to be fixed.”

A few questions later Kubiak dialed back the amount he truly knows about the injury.

“Let me be careful here, I just know he has a fracture,” he stated. “I am a coach, not a doctor.”

Ware played a great game up to that point. He compiled two half sacks, one tackle, and a quarterback hit. His teammates along the defensive line believe that, if it is just a small fracture, the defensive captain will be back shortly.

“I think he’ll cast it and play,” Derek Wolfe said confidently. “Because it’s him, DeMarcus Ware, he’s one of the toughest guys I now.”

Ware’s one total sack in the contest moved him past Julius Peppers and Jared Allen into the sole possession of ninth place on the NFL’s all-time sack list with 136.5 total sacks. His protégé, Von Miller, also thinks that Ware will be back due to his professional and often meticulous training regime.

“I feel like D-Ware, he’s battled some injuries. He’ll be right back, though,” Miller said. “That’s just the type of pro that he is. He’ll be able to fight through it. He’ll be right back.”

While Ware certainly is held in high esteem and his knowledge on the field is vital, the player’s behind him, Dekoda Watson, Shane Ray and Shaquil Barrett certainly are great replacements for the time being.

*UPDATE*

As first reported by Les Shapiro, Ware will, in fact, need surgery on the broken arm, but the hope is he’ll be able to return to the Broncos in around one month.