“They have a lot in common,” , who mentored Broncos offensive coordinator Davis Webb a decade ago, told me by phone when I asked about Nix and his new play-caller. “And I think that Davis is the same kind of guy (as Nix): He’s a gritty, tough-minded, professional, hard-working kind of blue-collar guy.

“And I think the Broncos quarterbacks kind of fit the (mold) and get his personality. That’s why I think it’s such a great fit.”

Dykes wouldn’t be particularly shocked to hear that Nix, Scrappin’ Bo, was about to throw down with star pass-rusher Nik Bonitto Tuesday morning in the first big scrap of 2026 training camp. Or that Webb passed his first play-calling test with flying colors last Friday in Atlanta.

Same kind of guy, right? Tougher than old leather. Stubborn as a pack mule. With twice the kick.

“A Davis Webb offense will play with confidence. I think they will be aggressive,” Dykes explained. “I think that it’s going to be very quarterback-friendly. I think the quarterback is going to be very in tune with what he’s doing. And Davis will be very in tune with what the strengths and weaknesses are. And so I think that he’s going to do a tremendous job.

“I just think that he’s going to be exactly what you want. I think he’s going to be confident, aggressive, calm, relaxed. And do a great job building the offense around his quarterback.  And I know from talking to him, I know he’s excited about doing it.”

Join the club. In Davis’ first 2026 game as play-caller, QB2 Jarett Stidham, the Johnny Unitas of the NFL preseason, completed nine of 15 throws for 131 passing yards in Atlanta, steering three of the Broncos’ first four drives of the night into scores.

How much fun could this offense be once Nix, who’s expected to make his August debut on Friday night at Empower Field against Green Bay, is back at the controls?

“I know (Webb) is excited about the quarterback personnel he’s got in the room at Denver,” Dykes continued. “I think he likes them all — as players and as people. And I think he’ll have a unique relationship with the quarterback.

“(Davis) likes his guys. Likes his guys, likes the work ethic of the room, the maturity of the room, I think the makeup of that room matches Davis’ personality. I think that’s very, very important.”

Dykes is an offensive savant who cut his teeth on the staffs of Mike Leach and Hal Mumme before winning at Louisiana Tech, Cal, SMU, and TCU.

Webb’s famous notebook of collected plays also features more than a few items lifted from The Dykes Collection. The Broncos OC played for Sonny in 2016 with the Golden Bears as a grad transfer from Texas Tech. Webb had originally committed to CU in January of ’16, only to flip to Cal in the spring after the latter hired Jake Spavital as offensive coordinator and QB coach.

“His maturity at a young age is what impressed me,” Dykes noted. “I think that he, probably as well as anybody that I’ve ever been around, understands the importance of the quarterback being comfortable with the game plan, being involved in the game plan, having a say.”

Webb threw 4,295 yards, 37 touchdowns, with 12 picks under Dykes,. Webb used that Berkeley P.T. as a springboard to the NFL Draft, where he was selected in the third round by the Giants in 2017.

“What I loved about Davis is, unlike a lot of quarterbacks, you ask them what they like, and they say, ‘Well, I like it all.’  And Davis was very specific,” Dykes recalled.

“I mean, he knew what he liked. He knew his strengths. I thought he had a lot of self-awareness. I think that’s a fantastic trait to have as a player. And probably an even better trait to have as a coach.

“I wasn’t around (him) in that long, but I remember thinking when he left, I’m like, ‘Yeah, that guy’s going to be a very, very successful football coach.’ And, ‘He’ll be a good quarterback, but he’ll even be a better coach.'”

Webb is a coach’s kid. Nix is a coach’s kid. Dykes is a coach’s kid.  It’s nurture as much as nature. From ballboy on your dad’s teams to drawing up plays for fun to collaborating on game plans, Bo and Davis grew up in different states — Nix in Alabama, Webb in Texas — speaking the same mother tongue.

“Oh, for sure,” Dykes said. “And there’s something unique and different about that. I mean, look, I’m sitting here with my 9-year-old son, and we’re having conversations about football, and plays, and ‘How do you handle things? ‘And I just think that that is a unique relationship, and I think it lends itself to (those types of) guys having a lot of success.

“I think when you look around and you find that the really successful offenses, I think the play-caller and the quarterback have a unique relationship. There’s a synergy between those guys. And a belief in each other.”

Dykes sees a synergy with Payton, too. Even as the Jedi Master is still learning what it’s like to let go of the Force.

“Actually, I know Sean (Payton) pretty well,” Dykes said. “I think they’ll be great.

“And Sean knows. (As a coach), you know how good this team can be. So he just wouldn’t turn it over to anybody, I promise you.

“I think for guys to keep their play-calling status — it’s the thing I miss the most, probably, of all the stuff (from) being an assistant coach. You got to be really close with your players, because you spent so much time with certain guys … and like I said, Sean wouldn’t turn it over to Davis if he wasn’t completely confident in him. I think it tells you everything you need to know.”

From the start of practice, the tenor was intense. As it grew more chippy throughout, a scuffle or two felt inevitable.

Rookie tight end Justin Joly was in a scrap during a one-on-one, which the defense apparently did not appreciate. The first time he caught a pass in the ensuing team period, he got rocked.

The real fireworks started in another round of team drills, however.

On the first snap for the top offense, the defensive line collapsed the pocket and ran into quarterback Bo Nix, who got knocked to the ground. He got up yelling at defensive players and spotted Malcolm Roach celebrating. Nix fired the football he was holding at the defensive tackle.

Two plays later, Nix was intercepted by Alex Singleton. On the other side of the field, guard Calvin Throckmorton ended up at the bottom of a pile with his helmet off and the fracas was on.

Nik Bonitto ran to the pile and appeared to jump on right tackle Mike McGlinchey. Nix ran after and grabbed Bonitto by the leg, trying to pull him off the pile.

Nix, for his part, downplayed the whole thing after practice.

“I love it. It����ap football,” Nix said. “It����ap getting me ready for the games coming up. It����ap a physical practice out there played by physical people. It got intense and we were just really enjoying it.

“Sometimes in the dog days of summer, practice gets long and the intensity runs high.”

Any apologies issued afterward from his end?

“Uh, no,” Nix said with a smile.

It took a minute or two to pull the groups apart and tempers clearly ran high. McGlinchey and Nix both had to be walked away from defensive players. Throckmorton was bleeding from his face and was taken back into the facility with a bag over his eye by training staff.

Several veterans stood by themselves for a couple of minutes once the No. 2s were in.

It was as spicy a scrap as there’s been here since Payton’s been the head coach.

“It����ap going to happen. We just can’t cross the line,” offensive coordinator Davis Webb said. “Sean said that and I agree. I’m glad we’re fiery. I love the competition out here. It����ap been unbelievable to watch both sides of the ball win some plays and win some periods. But we can’t cross the line.

“That����ap offense and defense. … We all had a part in that. We’re going to handle this in that meeting.”

Vance Joseph said there will be a reminder not to hit the quarterback, but he also wants his side of the ball to play aggressively.

“When we’re playing our style of football, it����ap aggressive and it����ap downhill,” Joseph said. “But you can’t hurt your team. ..

“Bo’s our quarterback and we don’t want anyone near Bo.”

On with the rest of the camp report.

Attendance

PUP — OL Nick Gargiulo.

IR — DL Matt Henningsen and OL Michael Deiter.

Did not practice — OLB Drew Sanders, C Alex Forsyth, ILB Levelle Bailey, WR Michael Bandy, TE Caleb Lohner.

Left practice — C Calvin Throckmorton.

Several key Broncos appear to be moving back toward full participation but aren’t there yet. C Luke Wattenberg did individual work but not the live inside run drill or team periods. Same for WR Marvin Mims Jr. Other veteran players had modified workloads Tuesday including DT Zach Allen.

Forsyth is one to watch because, after nearly getting the green light to play Friday, he was back to full participation on Monday. Then he wasn’t seen at practice Tuesday. Sanders, who has only played in four regular-season games the past two seasons, has not practiced the past two days after registering a sack Friday at Atlanta.

Defenses closes the day with dominant stretch

After the fight, the Broncos closed practice with a two-minute situation. The offense started at its own 36-yard line with 1:19 on the clock and trailing by seven.

Joseph’s group thoroughly dominated.

Nix’s set of plays with the No. 1 offense started with a McGlinchey false start — more on that later — to set up first-and-15.
From there, it was four-and-out for the offense with three break-ups by the defense. Pat Surtain II easily knocked down a pass for Courtland Sutton on first down. Brandon Jones followed with a break-up against Jaylen Waddle in the middle of the field on second-and-15. Then after a 6-yard completion to RJ Harvey on third-and-15, Ja’Quan McMillian finished the series with by knocking the ball away from Troy Franklin on fourth-and-9.

Jarrett Stidham got the next series with the offense and the No. 2s, too, went four-and-out.

Davis Webb said they saw the 13-yard run from Jonah Coleman in the preseason game and on the headset everybody said “we’re good.”

— Parker Gabriel (@ParkerJGabriel)

Thumbs Up

Webb lays down the law. Mistakes happen all the time in football, but some errors are less forgivable. When McGlinchey false started to open the late two-minute drill, Webb pulled him out of it. Alex Palczewski took over. McGlinchey then was put back in with the No. 2s for the next run. Earlier in practice, Webb did the same to LT Garett Bolles and TE Evan Engram. Those three, mind you, have a combined 26 years of playing experience under their belts.

That doesn’t change Webb’s approach. You jump, you’re getting yanked.

“That’s not our standard,” he said. “There’s been really good offensive production here through the history of this organization and we went through it in OTAs.

“If we’re not up to that standard, you will be taken out. I don’t care if you’re a starter or a back-up.”

The false starts aren’t good, obviously. But a first-year offensive coordinator laying down the law with veterans who are just about his age? That’ll pay off.

Thumbs down

Make the play. Rookie tight end Justin Joly hasn’t made many splash plays in camp, though he did add a good one ot his reel Tuesday. He got out in front of a wide receiver screen and did a good job running cornerback Brent Austin out of the play. That allowed wide receiver Kyree Duplessis to catch the ball, get up the field and score.

Overall, though, it was a rough day for Joly. He started the chain of events that led to the boiling over in team late in practice. He also had a chance to make an impressive catch over the middle when he went up high to haul in a pass from Jarrett Stidham. He had both hands on it when he hit the ground, but couldn’t reel it in. In a wide open tight end room, Joly is a pretty good bet to make the roster as a fifth-round pick, but there are still a lot of machinations to go in that room.

Vance Joseph on Jahdae Barron: “He plays multiple spots for us and that����ap going to be valuable. He’s a nickel, he’s a dime, he’s sometimes a safety. Last year when Pat was out for three games he played corner. That����ap his role right now. He wants more and I want more for him.”

— Parker Gabriel (@ParkerJGabriel)

Odds and ends

* Allen appeared to play a limited number of snaps in team settings Tuesday. DT Tyler Onyedim stepped in and made a play in his absence. The third-round pick out of Texas A&M ripped through on the first 11-on-11 snap of the day and probably had a sack — at least a pressure — on Nix. Onyedim had a quiet day stats-wise in his preseason debut Friday, but has shown signs of his potential through camp.

“I just try to take everything from (Allen’s) game,” Onyedim told The Post last week. “Just seeing him on film, seeing himi work between periods and things like that, it����ap real motivating. Seeing the great things he’s done over the past years and just wanting to be the next one up. I try to ask him all the questions I can ask him and take it all in. It����ap been great.”

Allen was a third-round pick who worked his way to All-Pro status and a $100 million contract. That����ap the kind of thing that gets noticed by a rookie third-round pick who plays in the same position group.

“He tells me all the time that he feels like I’m doing good and just keep going,” Onyedim said. “Play fast and we’ll figure out the rest out later.”

* It����ap been said more than once during training camp, but Riley Moss is playing at a really high level.

After an interception on Friday night in the preseason opener against the Falcons, he kept at it Tuesday. Moss during one-on-ones easily blanketed Troy Franklin as Nix waited and waited to deliver the ball. Finally he did, and Moss batted it down.

* A good news/bad news moment unfolded for undrafted rookie wide receiver Cam Ross on Tuesday. Ross got some run with the top offense, which meant he found himself on the receiving end of a target from Nix. In the second half of August, that����ap a good sign. Except on Tuesday, Ross dropped the ball. Not so good.

All the same, Ross got run with the top offensive group against the Falcons, too. His two catches went for just a yard, but he also got a carry that went for 28 and he’s a capable kick and punt returner. He’s one to watch the next couple of weeks.

* The Broncos run of center depth issues continued Tuesday. Wattenberg appears near a return but was still limited. With Forsyth out, Throckmorton stepped into the No. 1 role. But then he needed attending to after the fracas, which meant undrafted rookie Gavin Ortega got the call for the two-minute situations late in practice. Reid Holskey also took snaps early in practice Tuesday. He’s doing what he can to get in the mix for a practice squad spot. He spent most of last year on the New York Giants’ practice squad and has played tackle, guard and center this summer.

* The Broncos final open practice of training camp is Wednesday morning at 10 a.m. Lots open at 8 a.m. and gates at 9 a.m.

Hey, if Von Miller could play tight end, I’d open the checkbook and roll out the orange carpet. If you think Davis Webb is hot to trot now, just wait ’til you see what our guy cooks up from “23” personnel.

Alas, the Vonster plays outside linebacker. And at age 37, he’s now a situational outside linebacker, at that. The Broncos already have plenty.

“Obviously, I wouldn’t start,” Miller, who’s reportedly agreed to a 1-year deal with his hometown Dallas Cowboys for 2026, told The Post’s Parker Gabriel back in May. “Obviously, I wouldn’t play special teams.”

Points for saying the quiet part out loud, at least. Jonah Elliss, meanwhile, played 254 special-teams snaps last fall, and 257 in 2024. Also, Elliss just turned 23. And he’s got a cap number of only $1.6 million for ’26. So he’s making about $213,000 per career sack (7.5) since 2024.

Per Pro-Football-Reference.com, Miller has played all of three special-teams snaps the last two seasons. Von just inked a 1-year deal with his hometown Dallas Cowboys worth up to $7.5 million, allegedly. He’ll be raking in roughly $500,000 per career sack recorded (15) over the last two years.

Which means Elliss isn’t just younger than Von. He’s cheaper. And, potentially, better — better this fall, at least. Better for this locker room, too.

Remember Shaq Barrett?

The Broncos have two of him now. Four, if you include Dondrea Tillman and Drew Sanders.

After raising Cain in the Broncos’ 27-7 rout of Atlanta last Friday night, Elliss tied for second among all NFL defenders in total sacks/hits/hurries (five) from Week 1 of the preseason. And one of those pressures set up a diving Riley Moss interception in the first half.

“I’m always willing to do whatever the team needs me to do,” Elliss told us after practice last week. “Whether that����ap playing inside (linebacker) or playing on special teams. Whatever I can do to help us get to a championship, I’m willing to do.”

Elliss against the Falcons was credited with two tackles and two pass break-ups. Pro Football Focus graded him out with team-highs in overall score (91.3 out of 100) and in pass-rushing score (90.7). PFF’s No. 2 Broncos defender in Georgia? Fellow edge-rusher Que Robinson was second in the queue, with an 87.2 overall score and an 85.3 pass-rushing grade after four tackles and a QB hit. And the Broncos’ only official sack of the evening came from another outside ‘backer, Sanders — a guy who was, ironically enough, drafted with a pick acquired via the trade of the Vonster to the Rams back in 2021.

“Oh man, he’s been great,” Elliss said last week when asked about Robinson. “Not only has he excelled on the field, but he’s out there, and it feels like he’s a vet. I come off the field, maybe had a bad rush, or maybe had a bad rush in the wrong (situation), and he’s telling me what he saw. And he’s really just trying to elevate the room as a whole. Que’s been great, both on and off the field, helping everyone grow in the room and just making a competitive room.”

That room could get a bit thinner, though. And soon. The NFL opened the week by doling out at least four suspensions. Broncos edge rusher Jonathon Cooper wasn’t on the list, but Falcons outside linebacker James Pearce Jr. was. And you might want to put a mental pin in the latter’s case for future reference.

This past March, the Atlanta defender was charged with three felonies and a misdemeanor by the Miami-Dade (Florida) State Attorney following an incident that involved WNBA forward Rickea Jackson. Pearce reportedly used his car to follow and then collide with a vehicle driven by Jackson. Arrest reports indicate Pearce fled on foot from local police before being arrested. He was eventually charged with aggravated battery with a deadly weapon; fleeing and eluding police; resisting an officer with violence to his or her person; and a misdemeanor charge of aggravated stalking.

Closer to home, Cooper was arrested twice in June, during the OTA/mini-camp portion of the Broncos’ spring calendar, after incidents that allegedly involved his then-girlfriend. Following the second, he was charged with harassment, violating a protection order, and felony second-degree assault by strangulation.

. But Pearce landed an eight-game suspension Monday for violating the league’s code of conduct policy. Set your bars accordingly.

The tea leaves still say a ban for Cooper is coming, and knowing the love for Broncos coach Sean Payton up at NFL HQ, it’ll probably come at the worst possible time.

In other words? Hope for the best, brace for the rest. The Broncos need to be prepared for the league’s hammer to fall, to be stripped of Cooper for weeks at a time. Friday night gave more credence to the idea that they’re ready. And able. Even without Miller’s help.

“I mean, it means a lot that the coaches see that in me,” Elliss said last week. “Now I’ve got to prove it.”

So far, so good. In the meantime, be happy for Miller. , in front of family and friends, a fitting farewell for an orange-and-blue hero who’ll be wearing a gold jacket.

You could crash an AI data center with what’s been written about Miller and how he helped the Broncos win a third Super Bowl title. A lot less has been written, though, about how Miller’s departure five years ago is helping to secure a fourth.

The Vonster was shipped to the Rams for two picks in the ’22 draft — one in the second, one in the third. The second-rounder became Nik Bonitto out of Oklahoma — Von’s virtual replacement.

The third-rounder was eventually swapped for a fifth-round pick in ’22 that became Luke Wattenberg out of Washington, and another third-rounder in ’23, which became Sanders.

Miller turned into two linebackers, a starting center, 38 sacks and 45 TFLs since 2022 on 2,549 defensive snaps. And Sanders has accounted for only 276 of those due to injuries.

Over the previous four seasons, the Vonster put up 23 sacks and 23 TFLs on 1,407 snaps. Bonitto has been good for a sack every 53.97 snaps since 2023; Von’s rate over that same stretch is one every 63.8 snaps.

“All the cut-up tape, his production, his ball disruption, it just, for me, felt like, ‘Man, we’re taking a position that����ap harder to find, and moving him to a position that we think might be a little bit easier to replace,'” Payton said of Elliss recently. “That����ap not to say that we can’t package a few things. But I think we felt like he’s really ascending as an edge player. And we didn’t want to disrupt that.”

Nor should you. Not even for one last ride. Nostalgia can cover up a lot of cracks, but not a production drop of 15.4% from a legend in the winter of his career, a fading star with a star on the side of his helmet.

A text message from his old New York Giants teammate, Davis Webb, popped up.

“You like the mountains?”

It was the start of what became a fairly brief free-agency recruitment, but one in which Engram took visits to both Denver and the division-rival Los Angeles Chargers.

He liked the role the Broncos had in mind for him. He really liked that Webb was on Sean Payton’s staff.

“He was probably the No. 1 reason,” Engram said, for picking the Broncos over the Chargers. “Just knowing his influence on play-calls and his relationship with Sean. The team as well, too. The team was ready to turn the corner. They were looking for a couple more pieces, so it was the right time and the right place after getting cut from Jacksonville and needing more of a ‘move’ tight end.”

Year 1 was a success in many ways. The Broncos went 14-3, won a playoff game and nearly made the Super Bowl. Engram made several big plays along the way. But overall, his impact felt somewhat muted. He finished with 50 catches for 461 yards and a touchdown — the best statistical season by a Broncos tight end in several years — but it was well below what many expected from Engram and well short of what he’s become accustomed to in his now decade-long career.

There was natural wonder whether the Broncos would cut Engram or try to force him to take a pay cut. Neither ended up happening.

“Once the season’s done, I do some reflection things that are in my control and the way I played and the opportunities that I had,” Engram said. “I felt like there were things that definitely I can improve on, there were things I did really well and then the season’s over. I go into family time, unplugging, go on vacation. Kind of reset and recharge.

“I had a conversation with my agent and we were like, ‘We’re just going to show up wherever they ask us to show up.’”

Along the way this spring, Webb became the Broncos’ offensive coordinator and play-caller. Payton thinks it will benefit the entire offense.

Engram is a candidate to be near the top of that list, and not just because he and Webb are friends and former teammates.

“One of the most impressive things is he’s really just kind of built something for everybody,” Engram said. “Everybody’s got plays. Anytime anybody is getting the ball, it����ap an explosive. You look at Pat Bryant and the camp he’s having. Courtland (Sutton), he’s balling as usual. Troy Franklin’s flying all over the field. The running backs are getting active. Tight ends are making plays.

“So, that����ap probably been the most impressive thing. He’s utilizing all his weapons and I think that����ap going to allow us to be more dangerous when the live bullets come.”

Quarterback Bo Nix said last week the team had been using Engram in a wider variety of ways, including more frequently in the formation as a run blocker rather than just as basically a big slot receiver.

“Last year we used him a little bit more as a vertical pass threat, but I think him getting in the box and blocking is going to open more things up,” Nix said. … “He’s willing and able and I think that����ap part of his game that he’s going to really be able to show off this year and not be on and off the field.”

Engram showed it Friday night in Atlanta and said being in the mix “settles me into the game.”

In the first quarter, he motioned across to Jarrett Stidham’s left and settled off the line of scrimmage, but essentially in-line between left tackle Garett Bolles and tight end Adam Trautman. Engram and Bolles combination blocked defensive lineman Zach Harrison, but Bolles quickly climbed to a linebacker. Engram kept Harrison locked up and helped spring Jonah Coleman for a 13-yard gain.

“That was a credit to our coaches, Zach Strief and Austin King,” Engram said. “We literally worked that drill a good amount last week, it happened in the game and we executed it. It was nice.”

Engram said he made a point this offseason of wanting to prove that he could be a consistent contributor in the run game. He believes that for tight ends, “the more you can do in the run game, the better the passing game is going to be.”

One of the recurring themes of this offseason, though, has been that Denver needs a commitment to the run game. Engram thinks Webb is primed to deliver on that need, even though when the two were rookies together in 2017 — Engram a first-round pick of the Giants and Webb a third-rounder — Engram said the quarterback “was a gunslinger. He was trying to throw that (thing). He has that mentality of, when it����ap time to go, he’s going to let it fly.”

When Engram arrived in Denver, he saw another side of the then-quarterbacks coach and passing game coordinator.

“I remember when I first got here, I was hanging out in his office and that����ap what it was, learning the run game and diving into different schemes and being able to implement that whenever he was going to be able to call plays,” Engram said. “He turns over every stone in his preparation.”

It all has Engram in the mindset that his 10th season can be a good one. Better than his ninth.

“It����ap on an even bigger scale than just the offense,” he said. “You know the standard, you’re in the culture, you get to know the guys a lot more. Obviously, Davis, there’s some different things in the offense, but it����ap still the same family, still the same background in terms of the style we’re going to play.

“I’m definitely way more confident. Breaking the huddle a little bit more confident. Playing a lot faster.”

Sean Keeler: If you’re giving me 9.5 wins, I’m taking, baby. I’m taking your money, your car, your mortgage and your yacht. Preseason scorelines can fly, but your eyes do not. The Broncos’ starters — and those starters were without Bo Nix or Jaylen Waddle and J.K. Dobbins — made Atlanta look like a J.V. team, which the Falcons might very well turn out to be. Sixteen different Broncos offensive players landed a 64 grade (out of 100) or better by Pro Football Focus’ grading wonks, and 25 different defenders. That Sean Payton won by 20 on the road and still spent a good chunk of his postgame presser either complaining, , or both, is a heck of a good sign. I mean, totally weird and totally Sean. But a good sign, nonetheless.

Renck: The Broncos ranked among the NFL’s worst in early-down efficiency last season, especially in first halves. The slow starts made comebacks necessary. The 12-3 record in one-score games, including the playoffs, is among the main reasons sportsbooks don’t trust them. But J.K. Dobbins made a pinky promise, so he has to be healthy, right? In all seriousness, the ground game looks better because of Jonah Coleman. He is a bowling ball with wheels, already drawing comparisons to Maurice Jones-Drew. MJD delivered 941 yards as a rookie. If Coleman posts 700, the Broncos will finish closer to 14 wins than 10.

Keeler: I was always Jonah Curious, but once I saw him running over (and around) CSU last August, I bought a ticket on the Coleman bandwagon and hopped on board. He’s everything the Broncos needed last December and January and didn’t have once Captain Pinky Promise went down: A three-down hammer who can block, catch, and, unlike RJ Harvey, punish defenders when he runs between the tackles. Coleman is the best kind of Dobbins insurance policy, someone who’d start for most of the offenses in this league. That gives the Broncos staying power for those cold-weather tests coming up later on the fight card, especially at Pittsburgh (Nov. 28) and at New England (Jan. 3). Why did he “fall” to the Broncos in the fourth round? He’s not the breakaway/home run/speed threat that a Harvey or a even Jaleel McLaughlin is once they get outside the box. That said, you can go a long way with a guy who consistently hits double after double coming out of the backfield.

Renck: And the first problem with believing in the Broncos is my last point: Bo Nix. His multiple ankle surgeries create pause. His lack of production in the middle of the field raises eyebrows. But what if he is more mobile, and rushes for 500 yards and five scores? Based on what we saw in Davis Webb’s first game as the offensive coordinator, Nix will be asked to fill out the spray chart. With Dobbins and Coleman creating momentum on the ground, Nix can let it eat through the air. The vertical threat has been missing. If the Broncos establish it with consistency — hello Jaylen Waddle — they should average 27 points per game. Do that with this defense, and 10 wins will be no problem. The only question will be whether they can survive the first six games from a health standpoint to make a Super Bowl run?

Keeler: Payton has won fewer than nine games six times in 18 seasons as NFL coach. Cowboy up those first six weeks, and the rest of the ride gets smoother. After Oct. 15, the Broncos have six road tilts, and only one — at the Pats — is against a team that’s projected to finish with a winning record (the Cardinals, Panthers, Steelers, the Jets, the Raiders twice). There’s only one way the Broncos win fewer than 10 contests this fall, and that’s if Steady Sparky Stiddy has to start more than seven of them. September will be tight. October will be tense. But if the Broncos aren’t 4-3 or better on Halloween, I’ll eat my shorts.

After the Broncos dropped the first two of his tenure in August 2023, they’ve reeled off eight straight wins over now four different seasons.

The latest: A 27-7 drubbing of the Falcons on Friday night to kick off 2026 exhibition play.

Payton insists that results do matter in the preseason, though more to instill a culture of competition than anything else.

There is only so much to be taken from the box score of an exhibition. The Broncos racked up major advantages in total yardage (360 to 178), first downs (24 to 10) and time of possession (34:32 to 21:20). Payton was particularly pleased with the way his team played up front, finishing with a rushing differential of plus-113 yards.

“I thought we controlled the line of scrimmage,” he said.

The Broncos mounted four scoring drives on offense and also scored on defense when second-year cornerback Jahdae Barron returned an interception 98 yards for a touchdown late in the first half.

That was an electric takeaway. Here are five more.

Davis Webb’s promise is about more than a handful of scoring drives

Davis Webb said over the summer he thinks the Broncos will have a bit of an element of surprise early in the regular season.

Conventional wisdom might be that there’s no reason for the 31-year-old to show the true good stuff through three preseason games before his regular-season debut arrives against Kansas City and long-time defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo.

Payton’s reaction to that notion Friday night? Forget all that.

“We’re not thinking that,” he said. “He’s thinking about having his best night tonight.”

Really, the Chiefs don’t enter the thought process at all? There’s no cloak-and-dagger?

“No, no,” Payton insisted. “We’re not thinking that far ahead. He’s thinking about having his best night tonight and that����ap — I’d approach it the same way. The self-scout, the opponent stuff, then what they’re doing defensively, how they play defense is a little different.

“He’s thinking about, man, getting that confidence going with the group, the run game, the play action.”

Well, whether Webb called Friday night like a regular-season game or not, his second time in the driver’s seat for a preseason game looked awfully good.

It wasn’t just the six-play, 69-yard opening touchdown drive or the 217 yards and 14 first downs over the offense’s first four drives.

It was the way the offense flowed, too.

“It was so good,” quarterback Sam Ehlinger said. “He did a great job tonight. He’s got a great feel for the offense, a great feel for offensive football.”

Webb has natural flow. Plays are in quickly. The operation, at least from afar, looks clean. The head coach thought so, too.

“It was smooth,” Payton said. “I felt like, maybe there was a play or two when we got down to three seconds, but the subs were good, Davis was on point. I thought the QBs were good in and out of the huddle.”

Getting to the line quickly is great. It allows the quarterback precious seconds to survey the defense, decode looks and run the mental checklist for each play.

That����ap not all Webb is doing, though.

Stidham reiterated a strength of Webb’s that starter Bo Nix mentioned earlier in the offseason: The play-caller’s radio to the quarterback’s helmet cuts off at 15 seconds left on the play clock. Webb doesn’t just consistently get the call in quickly; he’s also got time for other information, too.

“There were little things he was telling me in the headset tonight — and I remember him doing the same thing last year — and just doing a very good job communicating and just being calm and collected. Like I said, just giving reminders on each play and just being helpful.

“He’s going to be a really good play-caller for a long time.”

Payton knows what it looks like. He’s been among the best in the business for a long time.

There are several steps to go, of course. Calling plays in mid-September, mid-November or mid-January is an entirely different beast than in the dog days of August.

There’s a more immesignpostn post ahead, too. Next week, Webb should get to radio plays into starting quarterback Bo Nix for the first time in a game situation.

Overall, though, the things that will determine whether Webb is a consistently high-level play-caller at this level are things he hasn’t experienced yet.

Namely, to Payton’s mind: What do you do when nothing seems to be working?

“Honestly, you can have games where that play sheet looks magnificent and then there’s games where you can stare at 140 (plays) and hate all of them,” Payton said. “When you have a rhythm, that����ap great, but how do you create it when there’s not? We started doing some sequencing studying — there’s four things that can happen in a series (on first and second down): Run/run, pass/pass, run/pass, pass/run.”

The key for Payton, regardless of your sequencing: How to reset if the opening play-calls don’t go well and how do you do it as quickly as possible?

Plus, good play-callers dictate games but they also feel how games are flowing across the board.

“We have to be connected in the three phases,” Payton said. “The better teams are connected as to what the overall plan is. So, as a play-caller, you’re paying attention to how you’re playing defense. Or, you’re paying attention to — you’re playing a really high-end offense and the volleys are different, right? All of that matters. …

“But how do you reset if it����ap not going well? I think that����ap always a trick. What can you get to based on what����ap being stopped and how do you adjust there?”

All of those elements and so many more will determine how well Webb does calling games.

Many of them he hasn’t faced yet in a real, live game environment.

So far, however, he’s passed every test in front of him with flying colors.

The Broncos defense looks regular-season ready already

It didn’t take long for Vance Joseph’s group to show its form. It did, though, take some work to get starting players enough snaps for their targeted workload of around 15 plays. Atlanta went three-and-out to start and only ran 13 plays on its first four possessions.

The defensive line wreaked havoc. The edge guys generated pressure. A bit later, two expected contributors at corner, Riley Moss and Jahdae Barron, came down with interceptions.

Atlanta’s five full first-half drives went punt, punt, interception, punt, pick-six. Then came four more punts before the Falcons finally mounted a fourth-quarter touchdown drive.

“It was good going out there with everybody and doing it live again,” All-Pro defensive tackle Zach Allen said. “Some things to clean up, but some good things, too. … We’re just striving to be as consistent as possible. That����ap what this time of year is. You’re always trying to find new techniques because you’ve always got to evolve, but at the same time, too, knowing the ins and outs of your job. …

“It����ap a fun group and guys have a really good attitude right now.”

The Jonah Coleman momentum is real

Sometimes all it takes is a comment from the coach to solidify what has been percolating all of camp: Rookie running back Jonah Coleman is in line to help the Broncos right out of the chute this fall.

Payton, asked about the fourth-rounder’s four-carry, 24-yard preseason debut, didn’t hesitate.

“Just what we’ve been seeing, right?” he said. “And then you see enough of it and you’re like, ‘alright.’ When you stop needing to (see it)… and, look, he’s had a good camp. I liked his balance coming out of some of the tackles. I thought overall that group had a good night.”

Jarrett Stidham waited a long time to get back on the field, then looked sharp

The last time Jarrett Stidham took the field, the Broncos lost a heartbreaker of an AFC Championship Game to New England.

Stidham, of course, was put in an unprecedented situation when his first start of the year came with a trip to the Super Bowl on the line.

Denver didn’t come up short only because Stidham turned the ball over and set up New England’s only touchdown. On offense alone, the Broncos also failed a critical fourth-and-1 in the second quarter and got the ball 33 yards from the end zone in the fourth quarter and failed to tie or take the lead.

“It wasn’t just a disappointment for him,” Payton said Friday. “I was disappointed in myself. You lose a game like that, you go back and look at it closely. Margins in that game, yeah. One of his strengths is his resiliency and I think he’s got a little bit of that ‘it’ factor. He’s really good with the operation. Quick. … I thought he handled it well.”

Stidham played the first half Friday, led three scoring drives and finished 9-of-15 for 131 yards and a touchdown.

“I feel like one of the things I try to hang my hat on is just putting my nose down and just working,” Stidham said. “Obviously, it didn’t go our way in the championship game, but it����ap football. There has to be a winner and there has to be a loser. If you get knocked down, you’ve got to get right back to work and that����ap what it was the entire offseason.”

One of Sean Payton’s preseason pet peeves: The travel party

The Broncos had a couple of players that required medical attention during Friday’s game. Levelle Bailey needed a cart to get back to the locker room after an ankle injury and didn’t return. Jaleel McLaughlin came up limping after a kickoff but was back in the game later on.

Neither, according to Payton, had any trouble finding attention from Denver’s on-site staff.

In fact, this is one of Payton’s consistent issues with preseason games: There are a lot of players and a lot of staff.

“Well, we had 17 people in the training room that weren’t players,” Payton said, just starting to get warmed up. “We had every ortho. We had every doctor in Denver here. So we were covered there. We had 15 trainers. This is the time of year where everyone has three interns for the summer. Equipment room. And so… it was good. (Chief communications officer Patrick Smyth) was good, his numbers are down. They weren’t as bad as I made it out to be (earlier this week). But what happens sometimes is that more is not always better.”

Payton made a reference to the 1970 movie “The Out-of-Towners,” in which Jack Lemmon’s character is constantly making notes about the people around him.

“There’s just a handful of things we’ll be better at,” Payton said. “I give (VP of player health and performance) Beau Lowery a hard time, but it����ap everyone. We had an injury and (the player) got five opinions in our own locker room.”

The conclusion was as obvious as Nik Bonitto’s first step.

These Broncos can win a championship. This season.

A year after coming up two victories shy of a parade, Denver looks better, bolder. Of course, the preseason does not count. And the Falcons don’t exactly inspire fear, so a best-case scenario this season would be landing a franchise quarterback like C.J. Carr or Arch Manning in the draft.

But fake games give real impressions. And the Broncos looked the part of a title team.

August is a time for overreactions, but what we saw Friday only reinforced expectations. We knew the Broncos were good. And the Falcons were not. Denver won 14 games last season with grit, clutch and luck. The 11-2 record in one-score contests has the entire NFL and Sportsbooks predicting a whiplash.

But there is an antidote. A shot of B-10. Or on this night, a capsule of Jarrett Stidham.

A percolating offense is the missing ingredient. The helipad for the yacht.

If the offense becomes a catalyst, the ceiling is the floor.

Did you see the plays Webb dialed up on the first drive? Were you watching when the football floated well beyond the line of scrimmage like a drone with evil intentions? Did the full throttle first half leave you rubbing your eyes and pinching your biceps?

Was the idea to go deep early and often?

“I definitely think so. Davis did a good job. We knew going in with some of the looks we were getting that we wanted to stretch the field a little bit,” Payton said during a halftime interview on 9News. “And then kind of give our guys some confidence, too.”

It left ����apountry panting. And the new Thunder mascot practicing gassers in an open field in parts unknown.

It was one game against an underwhelming team. But at the same time, the Broncos were more explosive, more dynamic, more balanced. It felt more like the days of Peyton Manning than Russell Wilson.

In 18 years of calling plays for the Saints and Broncos, Payton rarely, if ever, led an offense to a touchdown on the first drive in the preseason opener.

Webb made it look easy.

“He was thinking about having his best night,” said Payton of Webb’s game plan after the Broncos’ eighth consecutive preseason victory.

The Broncos drove 69 yards on six plays. Stidham — if there is a Canton for the preseason, he gets a gold jacket — completed all three of his passes. He opened with a 15-yard laser to Pat Bryant, who continued his momentum as the camp darling. He delivered a 40-yard jump ball to Courtland Sutton at the goal line.

The Broncos finished the first quarter with 167 yards on 19 plays and 11 first downs. They had 10 first downs against the Raiders in the 10-7 victory last November. And 12 in London against the Jets, leaving confused international fans yearning for the salad days of futbol.

They scored 17 points in the first 30 minutes without Bo Nix, who is poised to move into the top 15 of NFL quarterbacks this season on his current trajectory.

They ran roughshod without Jaylen Waddle, the entire reason this season is supposed to be different. He stayed home because of a leg injury. Probably a good thing. He might have aggravated his hamstring just watching.

The Broncos produced three promising drives without Marvin Mims Jr., their fastest player, and J.K. Dobbins, their best runner.

Jonah Coleman looked like a between-the-tackles bruiser and showed strength by carrying defenders for extra yards.

The tight end formerly known as Evan Engram caught a pass for 24 yards in the middle of the field. Troy Franklin delivered a single reception for 23.

Are the days of the Tyler Badie running back screen and the behind-the-line-of-scrimmage toss to Adam Trautman finally over?

I know what you are thinking: The pot-bellied genie actually granted our wish.

The Broncos smoked the Falcons 27-7. They won one game last season by more than 20 points, a 28-3 thrashing of the Jake Browning-led Cincinnati Bengals.

What’s more, the tempo was noticeable. The Broncos were moving fast. The play was getting in quickly. The hockey line changes will never go away, but everything seemed seamless with Payton as the CEO and Webb as the OC.

“It was a smooth operation,” Payton said. “The subs were good. Davis was on point. Thought the Qs did a good job of getting in and out of the huddle.”

Once you believe the offense can be dynamic, the other pieces of the puzzle fall into place. Playing with a lead, something foreign to the Broncos last season as they won 14 games despite trailing in 15 games, unlocks a new level.

The defense can play with sticky fingers, stealing the ball as opponents are forced to pass in third-and-forevers.

Denver delivered two interceptions on Friday. The Broncos had 10 last season. Riley Moss got one pick, tying his total from a year ago, his terrific grab of a terrible pass a reminder that Vance Joseph’s defense is bent on producing more takeaways.

When Payton said a year ago that he viewed his team as capable of winning a Super Bowl, he was on an island. The Broncos were considered too young, too unproven, too unbalanced.

But if they can run the ball early to improve first- and second-down efficiency, they are something else entirely.

Yes, it was a single meaningless game in Mercedes-Benz Stadium that had all the energy of Eeyore — “A lot of people dressed as empty seats,” Payton trolled — but it seems like the Broncos have more weapons and have a chance to be consistent.

Again, if the offense ranks in the top 15 in most categories, and the unit can score 27 points per game with this defense, you know where this story ends.

On Valentine’s Day at SoFi Stadium.

We would all love that.

The Broncos’ first-year offensive coordinator and play-caller aced the first of three tests before Denver opens its regular season a month from now at Kansas City.

Caveats abound, but this much is fact: Webb has called two games for the Broncos in his career and the Denver offense has hummed in each. The Broncos racked up 359 yards and picked up 24 first downs in a dominant 27-7 win over the Falcons.

A year ago, Webb put together a 567-yard preseason performance against Arizona that was so good it stuck with head coach Sean Payton as the season wore on, and he began seriously considering handing the play-sheet to his 31-year-old protege.

On this night, the Broncos got the ball first, and Webb went right to work with Jarrett Stidham under center.

The Broncos raced 69 yards in six plays and waltzed into the end zone to open the unofficial portion of the 2026 campaign.

Over the course of the first four possessions, the Broncos offense rolled to three scores, a 17-0 lead on 217 total yards and 14 first downs.

The preseason started in an appropriate fashion, given the way training camp has gone so far: With an easy completion to second-year wide receiver Pat Bryant.

If a player is having a better camp in Denver than Bryant, the list is very short.

“He’s a confident player with strong hands,” Payton said Wednesday before the Broncos traveled south. “That ability to be on the ground and not alter your feet or your foot path (after the catch), I think really serves him well. Then, like anything, you have a good practice, then you have two. Then pretty soon there are a couple stories, and then there’s five stories and then all of a sudden, you’re like, ‘Hey.’

“You guys have seen these guys grow right before our eyes, and it����ap happened, I’m sure, more than a number of times. It����ap good to see.”

Stidham also hit Courtland Sutton on a jump-ball down the field for 40 yards before fullback Adam Prentice punched home a 1-yard touchdown run.

By the end of the first quarter, the Broncos had one touchdown on the board in two drives, but had racked up 167 yards (8.8 per play) on 19 snaps and generated a whopping 11 first downs to Atlanta’s one.

One half of preseason football doesn’t mean the Broncos’ offense will be a top-flight unit through the regular season, of course, but there are few offseason moves more interesting and perhaps more impactful than Payton, long regarded as one of the league’s best play designers and play-callers, turning the duty over to Webb.

Certainly, it is the most important development for the 2026 Broncos that could actually be measured on Friday night. Quarterback Bo Nix, as expected, did not play and nor did star wide receiver Jaylen Waddle, the team’s biggest offseason addition. Other key players who did not dress included wide receiver Marvin Mims, Jr., running back J.K. Dobbins, the team’s top two centers in Luke Wattenberg and Alex Forsyth, key reserve Alex Palczewski and several other backups.

Payton announced Wednesday that Nix would not play and instead would make his preseason debut next week at home against Green Bay after having a pair of right ankle operations earlier in the offseason.

Nix has been a full participant through training camp, but Denver wanted to give him another week before real, live football, especially since Atlanta plays on turf.

Nix made the trip with the Broncos as Payton said earlier he would. He was out on the field for a brief workout and throwing session about three hours before kickoff. Then he watched Stidham and Ehlinger go through their normal early warm-up routine and throw to Broncos receivers, chatted with new Falcons president of football operations Matt Ryan, and eventually gave Webb a hug and donned a ballcap and headset to listen to his offensive coordinator call the game.

He watched his Broncos team dominate.

Not only did the offense score three times in the first half, but the starting defense — and a few key reserves — allowed just one first down in the first quarter.

The Falcons moved the ball more once Denver’s reserves had completely taken over late in the first half, but even a trip to the red zone didn’t result in points.

Instead, inside linebacker Karene Reid broke on a ball over the middle and tipped it into the air to cornerback Jahdae Barron, who raced 95 yards for a touchdown and a 24-0 halftime advantage.

Barron, the Broncos’ 2025 first-round pick, hasn’t found consistent playing time yet, but he made a series of sure tackles and followed his pick-six up with an athletic break-up on Atlanta’s next possession.

It was the kind of half that leaves even the most demanding of head coaches feeling good in the house of an old division rival.

On the way into the halftime locker room, Payton couldn’t help but take a jab at Falcons fans to 9News sideline reporter Cynthia Freelund, saying, “a lot of people dressed up as empty seats.”

Sean Payton’s fourth Denver team starts out on its 2026 journey with a preseason opener that kicks off at 5 p.m. in Atlanta.

Last time the Broncos were on the field, they came up four points shy of a trip to the Super Bowl with a 10-7 AFC Championship Game loss to New England at Empower Field in late January.

Jarrett Stidham started for injured Bo Nix, Vance Joseph’s defense dominated and a second-half snowstorm turned a slugfest into a stalemate.

Nix won’t be back on the field Friday for Denver’s preseason debut — he’s healthy enough to play, Payton says, and he’s been a full participant in training camp, but he won’t play until next week. So, Stidham and Sam Ehlinger will run the Broncos’ offense while offensive coordinator Davis Webb calls plays.

Payton said he expects most of his healthy starters to play around 15 snaps against the Falcons, but there are several starters who aren’t entirely healthy, especially on offense. It will be a surprise if receivers Jaylen Waddle and Marvin Mims play. Same with center Luke Wattenberg and key offensive line reserves Alex Forsyth and Alex Palczewski. Will J.K. Dobbins, whom Payton said had a soft tissue issue pop up earlier this week, or receiver Courtland Sutton — recipient of several rest days so far in camp — be out there? Stalwarts like corner Pat Surtain II? If so, their appearances will be fairly brief.

Here are six other storylines to watch.

Can Jarrett Stidham or Sam Ehlinger make a move in the QB2 race?

Payton has downplayed the race to be Nix’s primary backup, but it����ap been shaping up to be a good one. Outside of a completely outlier performance (to the good or to the bad), it seems unlikely that one half each for Stidham and Ehlinger on Friday will decide the race. Still, this is an important waypoint. Ehlinger looks more comfortable in his second season with the Broncos. Stidham’s been up and down in camp, but he’s got equity built up with Nix and with the coaching staff and front office.

“They’ve been great,” Webb said recently. ‘Stiddy,’ he’s in Year 4 (in Denver). He’s spot played for us very well. Sam has grown tremendously from last year to this year. We’re really fortunate to have three really good quarterbacks. Not every organization can say that. We can. And we trust all three if they had to play.

“I’m really looking forward to those guys in the preseason.”

The first question: Who’s No. 2? After that, the conversation turns to whether Denver decides to keep all three on the 53-man roster at the end of the month.

How do Jonah Coleman and the rookies look?

For Denver’s rookie draft picks and several undrafted free agents, this will be their first time on a game field in an NFL uniform.

As it happens, several of the Broncos’ rookies play positions that are among the toughest to evaluate in training camp.

Fourth-round running back Jonah Coleman has looked comfortable and flashed decisiveness and vision in practice. Still, the Broncos don’t tackle to the ground in camp. That makes Friday the best look yet at what Denver may have in the former University of Washington back. There is similar intrigue for third-round defensive lineman Tyler Onyedim, fourth-round offensive lineman Kage Casey, Denver’s pair of Day 3 tight end selections and also a pair of undrafted offensive linemen in tackle Tyler Miller and Gavin Ortega. Given the Broncos’ run of injuries at center, expect Ortega in particular to get a ton of work. Among Denver’s rookie receivers, Cam Ross and Kolbe Katsis have produced most consistently in camp.

Will the camp standouts carry their momentum over to games?

There are a handful of players who have been obvious standouts in training camp so far and they’re at various points of their careers and the depth chart. The short list: Receiver Pat Bryant, cornerback Riley Moss and defensive lineman Eyioma Uwazurike.

Moss counts squarely among the starters who, assuming he plays, likely will be in just for a couple of series.

Bryant and Uwazurike could get more run than that. Both played roles as key reserves last year and each look primed to take big steps forward this fall. They don’t need eye-popping stat lines against the Falcons, but watching each will be interesting nonetheless.

How loud of a preseason can Jahdae Barron have?

Expect Barron to see time in different spots during Denver’s three preseason games. The 2025 first-round pick played outside, in the slot and as the starting defense’s dime back so far through training camp. Barring some kind of major injury or change, it appears Barron is tracking toward being a primary reserve to Ja’Quan McMillian and on the perimeter, too. Will his workload be tilted one way or the other in preseason games? And can he build a little momentum heading into the regular season despite not knowing exactly how much he’ll be on the field?

Does Denver have enough depth at inside linebacker and safety?

The Broncos appear to be at least wondering the same question because they worked out veteran safety Taylor Rapp on Wednesday. The seeming front-runner as the next man in at safety behind Brandon Jones and Talanoa Hufanga is Devon Key. The third inside linebacker is wide open, with Levelle Bailey, Red Murdock, Karene Reid, Taurean York and just-back-from-injury Jordan Turner in the mix. Turner could move up fast if he stays healthy from here, but the rookie Murdock has been playing well in camp lately, too.

What… exactly is the plan at tight end?

Nix talked recently about the team using Evan Engram in a little bit more of an all-around manner during camp rather than the more exclusively big slot-type role he held last year. Barring a surprise release, Engram and Adam Trautman are the starting point for the room.

After that, it gets difficult to tell. Nate Adkins was putting together a solid camp but has missed the past couple days. Lucas Krull has been quietly solid and has made more plays recently. Rookies Justin Joly and Dallen Bentley have been quiet so far but will get a bunch of preseason run. Caleb Lohner drew real praise from Payton this spring but has been out all of camp and was seen recently watching practice with a walking boot on his left foot. Time’s running short for him to get back and make himself a real factor early in the season.

Bottom line: There’s a lot to sort out and five players for two spots or three at the max behind Engram and Trautman.

Fourth round? For the guy who’s been arguably the Broncos’ best runnner in camp since they put pads on?

Bargain of the draft.

With soft-tissue injuries mounting, it’s not a stretch to call Coleman ����apountry’s most important rookie.

Especially with J.K. Dobbins, Payton’s RB1, limping off the field during Monday’s drills.

When the Broncos visit Atlanta on Friday night in their preseason opener, it’s not all about the scoreboard. It’s about narratives. Bo Nix’s ankle. Davis Webb, Payton and the play-calling operation. Sam Ehlinger’s ascent. The rise of Pat Bryant III. Somebody, anybody, flashing from the tight end room.

But I want to see if Coleman can do to the Dirty Birds, or least Atlanta’s first or second team stoppers,

I want to see if Coleman is the J.K. comp this team missed last December and January. The bruiser. The grinder. The workhorse.

The eye test says Dobbins’ strengths are Coleman’s. So do the numbers.

First downs? Last fall, when everybody who lined up against the Washington Huskies knew what was coming, Coleman averaged 5 yards per carry with 11 of 83 carries piling up at least 10 yards. The season before that, he rattled off 5.8 yards per tote on first down, with 19 of 110 attempts going for at least 10 yards a pop.

Short-yardage? On third-down-and-3-yards-or-less last fall, Coleman notched a first down on 11 of 15 attempts. The year prior, he was 7-for-11.

Among running backs drafted in 2026, Coleman ranked second in broken tackles forced by the wonks at Pro Football Focus. No. 1 in his class? The only cat ahead of him? Jeremiyah Love, the No. 3 overall pick by Arizona, whom the Cardinals just gave $53 million guaranteed on his rookie deal — the most for a tailback in NFL history.

Since 2014, only two FBS backs with at least 500 collegiate carries have averaged more opponent missed tackles per rush than Coleman: Bijan Robinson, Ashton Jeanty and David Montgomery. Let’s see. That’s the best runner in the NFL now; a former No. 6 pick who piled up 975 yards on the ground for a laughable Raiders offense last fall; and a veteran who’s currently on a streak of seven straight seasons of at least 700 rushing yards.

Darn good company, I’d say.

There’s more. Blocking? What Coleman lacks in size (5-foot-8, 220 pounds), he makes up in sheer rage. PFF graded him out with a 70-plus (out of a 100) or better in pass-blocking with Washington each of the last two seasons. Also per PFF: three sacks allowed in four seasons as a collegiate blocker.

The book says Coleman committed just one fumble in 639 collegiate touches as a runner or receiver with Washington and Arizona. And only one drop over more than 120 targets as a receiver.

In other words, safer than a steel deadbolt. Trustworthy. The kind of guy Payton craves, and will inevitably need, given that Dobbins joined the soft-tissue injury club Monday — a table that’s already got Jaylen Waddle and Marvin Mims Jr.

“I think he’s going to be fine,” Payton said of Dobbins. “We’re just being smart with it.”

It wasn’t just smart to draft Coleman out of the University of Washington. It was borderline genius. Dobbins is 27. He’s coming off the best two back-to-back seasons of his NFL career, a high-stepping, high-volume hammer who’s averaging 4.8 yards per touch since 2024. You need a tone-setting run on first down, he’s your man. You need a tough couple yards on third-and-short, No. 27 knows how to move those chains north.

It’s just that, over these last two seasons, he’s also averaged only 12 appearances and 10 starts. At his peak.

Dobbins has become the Broncos’ version of Aaron Gordon: Physical, essential, a good teammate and a fan favorite … whose body also has a habit of repeatedly failing on him.

The Broncos were 8-2 (.800) last fall when Dobbins started and 6-0 when he touched the rock 16 times or more. The Nuggets went 27-9 (.750) during the ’25-26 regular season when AG played and 26-7 (.788) when he started.

The parallels are more than a little uncanny, aren’t they? When both are healthy, their teams feel whole, their systems make sense. And if they weren’t there, neither franchise had truly found a comparable replacement in case of an injury.

Until now.

Coleman has spent the last 11 days or so looking like the Broncos’ most complete runner after Dobbins himself. Willing blocker? Yep. Weapon out of the backfield? That, too. Angry runner inside? Check. Secure with the football? Absolutely. Home-run speed? Sure, although maybe not to the degree of an RJ Harvey, Tyler Badie or Jaleel McLaughlin.

Harvey’s strengths are his second and third gears. You just rarely saw them between the tackles. And that’s fine. If Harvey becomes the Broncos’ version of James White, it’s not necessarily a wasted draft pick. As a speedster who’s better in space, beating defenders around the perimeter, Harvey’s more of a compliment/caddy to Dobbins, more lightning to his thunder, than a like-for-like substitute.

“I think (as a) young runner,” Payton noted last week, “you don’t feel like a rookie with Jonah.”

Thank goodness for that. You’ll say it this weekend. You’ll say it Week 5. And Week 10. And in the AFC Championship game, if the fates are kind.