The Denver Broncos closed out preseason with a 28-19 victory over the New Orleans Saints on Saturday, capping off a perfect 3-0 record. As final roster cuts loom, several of the team’s top-graded performers have already found themselves on the outside looking in. Pro Football Focus (PFF) released its Preseason Week 3 player grades, highlighting the best and worst individual performances.
Offense
Best Players
- WR Courtland Sutton: 89.2
- OL Clay Webb: 84.1
- RB Audric Estime: 83.5
- WR Kyrese Rowan: 82.9
- QB Bo Nix: 80.1
Worst Players
- OL Joe Michalski: 27.5
- TE Evan Engram: 37.4
- TE Adam Trautman: 45.1
- OL Marques Cox: 46.6
- WR Marvin Mims: 49.6
In just 16 minutes of play, Sutton managed four receptions for 83 yards and a 19-yard touchdown. In their second year together, he and Nix have improved upon their chemistry and are on track for a huge year together. His efficiency on limited snaps underscored just how vital he will be as Denver’s go-to weapon this season.
Despite an impressive performance, Estime became an unfortunate casualty of the final roster cuts. With a crowded running back room, the team simply couldn’t carve out a spot for him. The arrivals of J.K. Dobbins and R.J. Harvey (50.0) likely ultimately sealed his fate long ago, though it’s likely another team will scoop him up off waivers in short order.
Defense
Best Players
- LB Levelle Bailey: 83.6
- DL Michael Dwumfour: 82.8
- DL Zach Allen: 79.0
- S Devon Key: 74.8
- OLB Quandarrius Robinson: 74.0
Worst Players
- OLB Andrew Farmer: 30.0
- OLB Dondrea Tillman: 40.3
- CB Micah Abraham: 42.4
- S Keidron Smith: 44.9
- DL Jordan Jackson: 45.1
One of the more surprising moves came with Bailey’s release. The decision raised eyebrows, as he had taken first-team reps throughout camp and delivered consistent performances in the preseason. While Dre Greenlaw is expected to return from injury in time for the Broncos’ opener, parting ways with Bailey still feels like a gamble.
Eyioma Uwazurike (62.9) closed out the preseason with an impressive showing. PFF’s grades highlight Uwazurike’s excellence in tackling (69.6), and his strong finish was rewarded with one of the Broncos’ 53 final roster spots on Tuesday.
Special Teams
- ST Garret Wallow: 90.5
- LS Mitchell Fraboni: 63.1
- R Courtney Jackson: 59.5 (KR) 60.1 (PR)
- P Jeremy Crawshaw: 60.0
- K Wil Lutz: 63.6 (FG) 57.8 (KO)
Crawshaw had another weak showing. In the preseason, he ranked 32nd in yards per punt (43.7) and 35th in hang time (4.02 seconds). The Broncos are likely to bring in some competition on the practice squad if Crawshaw continues to struggle.
Denver opens the regular season on September 7th against the Tennessee Titans, entering the matchup as 7.5-point favorites. Expectations are sky-high, and the Broncos will have their first chance to prove that leading the preseason in both offense and defense was no accident.