DENVER — In the same game that a former first-round pick got booed before he even took a snap, he also nearly led a game-winning drive in the waning moments of the fourth quarter. Instead, a player who was even more maligned last season ended up costing the team the game.

To make things even more weird, the otherwise “heartbreaking” loss didn’t have too much of an impact on the mood in the postgame locker room, given the fact that the first and second-team units played very well.

In the end, while football is the ultimate team sport, the preseason has more of an individual feel to it, so let’s try to make sense of this thing by looking at whose stock is rising and whose stock is falling after the Broncos 23-24 loss to the Chicago Bears in their second contest of the preseason.

Rising

⬆Case Keenum

It wasn’t perfect, but after last week’s dud, it was huge to see Case Keenum put a strong performance out on the field. The veteran QB finished the night going 8-for-13 for 78 yards and led the team to two scoring drives, netting 11 total points.

Keenum missed some throws that we’ve seen him make repeatedly in training camp, interestingly missing high on each and every one, but he also could or maybe should have had a long touchdown pass to Courtland Sutton that fell to the ground due to Sutton uncharacteristically mistiming his jump while getting interfered with.

Progress is the name of the game at this point of the marathon that is an NFL season, and progress is exactly what he showed.

⬆Royce Freeman

Let’s just go ahead and name this guy the starter, what do you say?

It’s not that Freeman did anything crazy on the night, only turning his six carries into 20 yards, but it’s just becoming clear that he’s a better back than Devontae Booker is.

During his second touchdown in as many weeks, Freeman displayed a nice combination of vision and agility as he avoided a defender in the backfield and busted through the hole for the four-yard score.

It just seems clear that Freeman, and the next guy on this list, have a different type of juice.

⬆Phillip Lindsay

Last week, after scoring the first touchdown of his professional career, Phillip Lindsay wasn’t thinking about his big catch and run into the end zone.

Before the touchdown, he had missed a tackle in punt coverage—the first time he had ever played on punt coverage—and he was extremely disappointed in himself over that.

On Saturday, Lindsay made up for it in a big way.

Lined up on the right side of the punt formation, Lindsay faced a double team as the punt soared to the opposite side of the field, but as returner Cre’Von LeBlanc cut it back toward Lindsay, to 5-foot-8, 190-pounder clamped on and brought him to the ground inside the five-yard line.

This time of year, coaches are always talking about players learning from their mistakes and correcting them, Lindsay on Saturday was a perfect example of that.

Oh, and did I mention he mixed in with the first team at running back, led the team in rushing yards?

It’s time to get No. 2 a number he can legally rock on Sundays.

⬆Bradley Chubb

What do you get when you mix a lightning-fast get off, with the size and strength of an Ox and the agility to play in coverage? You get a top-five pick in the NFL Draft.

Chubb put the full arsenal on display Saturday, starting with forced safety on beard QB Mitch Trubisky in which the rookie exploded off the line and nearly scooped the ball up for a touchdown before Trubisky could get there.

Chubb had some mishaps, as most rookies do, but in the end, he made his impact felt. On the play before the safety, a third down, both of the Bears’ tackles jumped early in anticipation of having to block Von Miller and Chubb.

The kid is a hoss.

Honorable mention: Tramaine Brock, Bradley Roby, Justin Simmons, Chad Kelly, Jeff Heuerman, Marquette King.

Falling

⬇Isaiah McKenzie

And it was going so well.

Just when you started to trust Isaiah McKenzie again, he goes out and does something like that.

With less than a minute on the clock and the Broncos in position to kick a 55-yard, game-winning field goal, McKenzie hauled in a screen pass and headed upfield but was stopped in his tracks and stripped of the ball as he attempted to make a big play.

McKenzie clearly has a different level of electricity to his game when the ball is in his hands, but if he can’t keep it in his hands, what’s that worth? It will be interesting to see how long the second-year man’s leash is with the coaching staff.

⬇Paxton Lynch

That former first-round pick who got booed, yeah, that was Paxton Lynch

As Lynch trotted out for his first series with the third team, the fans voiced their displeasure with the first-round bust—a label that nobody can dispute at this point.

Not long after John Elway insinuated that Lynch going up against the threes leveled the playing field for Lynch in comparison to Kelly, No. 12 showed that even playing the scrubs can’t make him look good.

At the end of the day, Lynch went 5-of-11 for 39 yards. It’s starting to feel like the end is near for Paxton Lynch in Denver.

⬇Issac Yiadom

You hate to put the kid in here, as it does feel like he is close in his development and has the tools to be a good player, but he just keeps getting picked on.

Yiadom gave up a slew of completions in coverage and also drew two flags on the night.

While he doesn’t appear to be a guy who is going to give up a big play, if he had to step in due to injury, you wouldn’t exactly feel comfortable with it right now.