ENGLEWOOD, Colo. -- Denver Broncos defensive tackle Marvin Austin plans to play Sunday against the Seattle Seahawks to honor his father, Marvin Sr., who died Friday.
Marvin Austin Sr., 49, had been hospitalized in North Carolina since Sunday night, when was suffered serious injuries after being ejected from a car during an accident in Selma, North Carolina.
"Now his spirit is with me,'' Austin said after Friday's practice. "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"Marvin Austin, Broncos DT,
on playing after father's death
The Broncos had excused Austin from team functions Monday and Wednesday -- Tuesday is the players' day off -- and he practiced with the team Thursday and Friday.
Austin Sr. was one of four people hospitalized Sunday after the accident.
Marvin Austin will wear "Austin Jr.'' on his jersey for the remainder of the season, following the team's Week 4 bye.
"I got no reason not to play," Austin said. "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.''
Austin, a former second-round pick by the New York Giants who had back surgery earlier this year, signed a one-year deal with the Broncos and played himself into the team's defensive line rotation.
He played 17 plays in the opener against Indianapolis and 14 plays last week against Kansas City.