The 2026 Denver Broncos‘ first preseason game is in the books. Although it was just the preseason, it was about as good as it can be as Denver took it to the Atlanta Falcons and beat them 27-7.
Here’s who stood out throughout the game and the biggest winners.
Davis Webb
Sean Payton handed over play-calling duties to Davis Webb this offseason and put his full support behind him, stating Davis simply will not fail.
Friday was about as perfect of a start for Webb as one could imagine. The first drive was as close to perfect as it gets, as a matter of fact.
The first play was a beautifully dialed up 15-yard completion from Jarrett Stidham to Pat Bryant. Four plays later, Webb dialed up a shot as Stidham hit Courtland Sutton for 40 yards.
One play later, Adam Prentice took it into the end zone. The first drive was six positive plays for 69 yards and a touchdown. Webb was dialed in.
While Denver’s offense didn’t stay perfect for the rest of the game, Webb was still dialing it up.
With 11 minutes left in the second quarter, the Broncos had a whopping 217 yards of offense, including a fun 28-yard jet sweep to Cameron Ross.
“Davis did a good job,” Sean Payton told 9News at halftime.
Yes, it was just the preseason. But even without Bo Nix playing, Webb still had a heckuva start.
Jarrett Stidham
Jarrett Stidham’s not in an official quarterback battle for the team’s backup spot, according to Payton. But with Sam Ehlinger having a nice training camp and taking some backup reps in camp, there’s been competition at least.
On Friday night, Stidham did his best to secure his role as the team’s No. 2 QB behind Bo.
Stidham was perfect on the first drive, going 3-for-3 for 59 yards and leading the team to a touchdown. He finished the first quarter 6-for-8 for 122 yards through the air.
In the second quarter, Stidham made arguably his most-impressive play. With pressure in his face in the red zone, Stidham made an impressive throw to Jaleel McLaughlin, who shook one defender and took it to the end zone.
Stidham played the entire first half and finished 9-for-15 for 131 yards, a touchdown and a passer rating of 110.7.
“I thought he did a good job. Started off strong on the first series. Moved around in the pocket,” Payton told 9News. about Stidham “I thought he played well.”
Courtland Sutton
Pat Bryant and Jaylen Waddle have been the talk of town this year. And rightfully so.
But on Friday, Courtland Sutton made sure people didn’t forget how good he is.
Not only did the Pro Bowl receiver haul in the 40-yard pass to get the offense to the 1-yard line on the first possession, he then made an incredible one-handed catch.
Sutton was perfect on the day, hauling in all three of his targets for 60 yards.
Court is in session.
Jonah Coleman
RJ Harvey got the start with J.K. Dobbins not playing, but Coleman brought the heat off the bench.
The rookie running back put on a show and then some, proving he deserves playing time this year.
The bruising back left a mark on the Falcons. In the first quarter, Coleman exploded through the line of scrimmage, put his shoulder down, bounced off an Atlanta defender, hit a spin and picked up an extra five yards. Just a few plays later, the rookie displayed fantastic vision, kicking a run designed to the right out to the left.
Coleman also showed off his hands, hauling in a pass that was later called back due to a penalty.
Harvey had a nice outing too, but Coleman showed the Broncos he should have a role this year and in the future.
Riley Moss
The biggest winner of training camp so far has been Pat Bryant. The second biggest winner has been Riley Moss.
On Friday, Moss brought his hot streak into the preseason.
Early in the second quarter, Moss read Cooper Rush’s eyes to perfectly play a poor pass. Then, Moss displayed his hands, making a grab outside his left shoulder for the interception.
Denver’s defense was fantastic last year outside of taking the ball away. Moss kicked off this season with an impressive interception.
Karene Reid
Jahdae Barron had Denver’s first defensive score of the year, taking an interception 95 yards to the house. But the play would have never happened without inside linebacker Karene Reid making a fantastic play on the ball.
As Rush looked to the middle of the field, the second-year linebacker dove to break up the pass. Barron did the rest, but it would have never happened without Reid.
Reid made Denver’s roster last year as an undrafted free agent and appeared in 10 games.
Behind starters Alex Singleton and Justin Strnad, the Broncos are looking for players to step up and take the top backups jobs. Reid made a strong case for himself with that big-time play.
Jahdae Barron
Denver’s 2025 first-round pick had the flashiest defensive play of the game, hitting a whopping 21.15 miles per hour on his pick six, according to Next Gen Stats. But he had two plays that might have been even more impressive to the coaching staff.
Near the end of the first half, Barron made a fantastic pass breakup on third down to force the Falcons to punt. Barron was in great coverage and made an even better play on the ball.
Barron also should have had a second interception, but the pass slid right through his hands. While he didn’t get the interception, he still made a play that will impress the coaching staff.
After a relatively quiet training camp behind Moss and Ja’Quan McMillian, Barron had a fantastic start to the preseason.
Adam Prentice
Even though Payton is no longer calling the plays, it’s clear the fullback is still important in the Broncos’ offense.
Fullback Adam Prentice had not one, but two carries on the first drive. The first went for a first down. The second went for a touchdown.
If that wasn’t a good enough day for Prentice, Payton gave him even more job security at halftime.
“We believe in the fullback,” the head coach told 9News.
As the only fullback on the roster, Prentice is a near lock to make the 53-man roster… and potentially get a touchdown or two in the regular season.
