ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — Starting inside linebacker Todd Davis exited practice early on Thursday and was carted off the field.

Davis appeared to suffer a lower-body injury during a team-period play late in practice and limped off the field. He then rode the cart to the locker room before walking into the Broncos' practice facility under his own power.

"He came off," Head Coach Vic Fangio said following the team's first training camp practice. "I don't know much about it at this moment. We'll see when I get in there."

Outside linebacker Bradley Chubb said after practice that Davis is a "huge part of the defense."

"Todd, I feel like he's one of the most vocal leaders on this team — not just the defense," Chubb said. "He's one of those guys that sometimes last year in the games, I'd be like, 'Hey, Todd, what I got right here?' He just always knows what he's doing. He's always reliable. He's always making the right calls."

Tight end Bug Howard and punter Colby Wadman both missed the opening practice of training camp.

Fangio said Howard missed the session with an illness, while Wadman had a "family issue back home."

"Bug got sick yesterday," Fangio said. "[He] was vomiting and all that, so he couldn't go out there. I think he just got a little touch of food poisoning."

Emmanuel Sanders and Phillip Lindsay, though, were back at practice.

Sanders participated in individual drills for the first time this offseason, while Lindsay took his first-team reps since injuring his wrist in December.

Fangio continued to stress the Broncos would ease Sanders back in to practice.

"He's doing really good," Fangio said. "And he's not on PUP, so it's going to be day to day with him how much we add onto his plate. And we're just going to build to it and see how it goes."

Fangio said he didn't think Lindsay had any limitations.