"That was big for him," quarterback Jay Cutler said. "As a team we can function whether he has 10 catches or two catches, but this will help him a lot. He looked good today and had a good attitude."

Marshall hasn't had a lot of big games since early in the season, but his overall numbers are good. Marshall has 83 receptions for 1,033 yards and six touchdowns.

--Cory Boyd says he's ready if ready if needed. The rookie tailback was brought up from the practice squad to the active roster after Peyton Hillis suffered a season-ending hamstring injury. He was signed to the Broncos' practice squad in early November and said he is getting to understand the offense.

"I feel much more confident as days go on and practices go on," Boyd said.

--The Broncos re-signed tight end Jeb Putzier, who was with the Broncos from 2002-05. He had 572 yards receiving in 2004 and had 37 catches in 2005, so the Broncos know he can make plays if he's needed.

"Jeb can make plays and obviously with Nate being out and having some guys banged up, we thought we needed some more depth at the tight end position," Broncos coach Mike Shanahan said.

The Broncos released safety Herana-Daze Jones and signed running back Steve Baylark to the practice squad.

BY THE NUMBERS: 2 -- NFL teams that have never beaten the Broncos. The Arizona Cardinals are 0-7-1 against Denver, Carolina is 0-2. The Broncos play at Carolina on Sunday.

QUOTE TO NOTE: "It's been up and down, but the guys stuck together and we won some tough games and we battled through it." -- QB Jay Cutler.