Marvin Austin will take the field with a heavy heart

Mr. Austin Sr. had been hospitalized since Sunday night after he was ejected from a car during an accident in North Carolina. Marvin was excused from Broncos practice Monday and Wednesday but returned with the team for practice on Thursday and Friday.

Via ESPN

"Now his spirit is with me...He's going to help me get through those hard days where I don't want to get it done and don't want to do it. That's who I'm going to be talking to inside myself.  I got no reason not to play, I've got to honor my dad. I have his name and your name is all you've got. I'm his junior and after this game from now I'll be wearing 'Jr.' suffix on my back."

"When I'm on the field, it's hard for me not to think about him. I'm thinking about him and saying, 'I'm going to (mess) this guy up. Because that's how my father would tell me, '(Mess) him up.' And you can quote that.''

Very sad news from Broncos Country. Rally around Marvin and let him know he's family. He's one of ours and will need support as he goes through the grieving process. I believe his twitter account is @AnchorManAustin if you want to send some kind words his way.