Siemian back at practice

Broncos QB appears likely to return Sunday at Titans.

Trevor Siemian took a big step Thursday — whether that’s forward or back depends on how his sprained left heel responds to his first practice since getting hurt Nov. 27 against Kansas City.

“It was a positive day, so we’ll see where we’re at tomorrow,” coach Gary Kubiak said after splitting snaps between Siemian and rookie Paxton Lynch at his first full practice of the week.

Kubiak characterized Siemian’s practice as “very encouraging.”

Siemian moved around well during the 20-minute media access period and teammates later said he was sharp and mobile throughout the workout.

The Broncos (8-4) visit the Titans (6-6) this weekend.

Siemian sat out last week’s 20-10 win at Jacksonville when Lynch completed 12 of 24 passes for 104 yards, but didn’t turn the ball over in recording his first NFL win.

Browns: Robert Griffin III, who hasn’t played since injuring his shoulder in the Sept. 11 season opener at Philadelphia, will start Sunday against the Bengals as the winless Browns try to avoid becoming the second team in NFL history to go 0-16.

Griffin hasn’t played since breaking a bone in his left shoulder in Cleveland’s 29-10 loss to the Eagles nearly three months ago. He was recently cleared for contact and coach Hue Jackson selected him to be the starter following two practices after Cleveland’s bye week.

Jackson will make his sixth quarterback change in his first season with Cleveland. After Griffin was injured the Browns also started Josh McCown (three games) and rookie Cody Kessler (eight).

Jets: Nick Mangold’s season is over — and so might his tenure with New York. The star center was placed on injured reserve with an ankle injury after aggravating it during a loss to the Colts on Monday night.

The team decided to shut down Mangold, who will be replaced by Wesley Johnson at center. Johnson filled in as the starter for four games after Mangold initially injured his ankle against Baltimore on Oct. 23.

The 32-year-old Mangold, a first-round pick in 2006 and the longest-tenured player on the team, is due nearly $6.075 million in base salary next year and the Jets could save $9.075 million on the salary cap by cutting him.

Packers: A banged-up defense took another hit with linebacker Nick Perry ruled out for Sunday’s game against the Seahawks with what coach Mike McCarthy called a “significant hand injury.”

Perry, who leads the team with eight sacks, was also effective against the run. He got hurt in the first half of last week’s win over Houston before returning after halftime playing with a heavily-wrapped left hand.

McCarthy said he didn’t know how long Perry would be sidelined and he would be re-evaluated Monday.

Falcons: Signed cornerback Robert Alford to a four-year contract extension. Alford has played in 53 games over four seasons with the Falcons, including 41 starts. He has nine interceptions, returning two for touchdowns.

Michael Raffl scored the gamewinner with 1:21 left in the third period as the Flyers rallied from a 5-3 deficit to win their seventh straight.

Matt Duchene, Nathan MacKinnon and John Mitchell scored unassisted goals to give the Avalanche a 3-0 lead early in the second period. Calvin Pickard stopped 26 shots. Sidney Crosby scored his 18th goal and assisted on another and Matt Murray made 28 saves as the Penguins won their fourth straight. Jayson Megna and Jack Skille both had two goals and goalie Ryan Miller made 38 saves before leaving with six minutes left in the third period. No reason was immediately given for his exit from the game. Torrey Mitchell scored twice and Phillip Danault, Artturi Lehkonen and Max Pacioretty also had goals for the Canadiens. Kevin Hayes scored a power-play goal with 1:09 left in the third period. Late Late Late

Commissioner Gary Bettman says there’s significant opposition among team owners to participation in the 2018 Winter Olympics.

The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office denied the Vegas Golden Knights’ trademark application. The office cites potential confusion with the College of Saint Rose in New York, also the Golden Knights.