5 Denver Broncos players to keep an eye on in preseason Week 2

The Denver Broncos are almost officially back for the 2023 NFL season with a preseason game against the Arizona Cardinals on Friday night in Glendale. Although the results of preseason games obviously don't matter, what happens within the four quarters certainly does. Players are fighting for their roster lives, not only with the Broncos but for all 31 other teams that might be looking for upgrades.

What players are going to be in focus against the Cardinals? We're undoubtedly watching some of the backups who could end up playing a major role this year, but there are so many different aspects to the preseason that are fascinating.

How is the RB3 competition going to unfold? Which players step up on special teams? What about the kicking competition? Who emerges as the top punt return option? What players step up at receiver after all the team's injuries there? How does the depth on the offensive line look? How does the pass rush look?

These are just a handful of the things we'll be watching in the Denver Broncos' first preseason game, which is technically Week 2 of the preseason. Here are 5 players you should be keeping an eye on, in particular.

5 players to keep an eye on in Denver Broncos preseason game vs. Cardinals

1. Jarrett Stidham, quarterback (no. 4)

It seems obvious to be saying, "Keep an eye on the backup QB," and you certainly won't have to try very hard, but Stidham is a player to watch against the Cardinals without question. The Broncos prioritized Stidham over a wide variety of players available to them. Stidham was not on my personal list of high-upside reclamation QBs for Sean Payton to try and resurrect, but he's a developmental player with starter upside, nonetheless.

Given all that Sean Payton has said about him dating back to the Spring, I think it's safe to say our expectations for this preseason debut should be relatively high. Stidham was signed to be the backup QB, but he's more than "just" a backup. This is someone the Broncos have pegged as having starter upside. This is a player they believe can be one of the top-32 at his position in the league, eventually.

Stidham will be in focus as he goes out and tries to execute a new offense with new teammates against a live opponent.

2. Nik Bonitto, edge defender (no. 42)

Nik Bonitto desperately needed to have a big training camp for the Broncos in 2023, and he's had it. The former second-round pick out of Oklahoma has made a huge impact throughout the course of training camp, seemingly breaking out at the best possible time.

When everyone at the EDGE position is healthy, Bonitto is probably the fifth guy in line behind Frank Clark, Randy Gregory, Baron Browning, and Jonathon Cooper. But that doesn't really matter. It looks like at least the top five guys at this position group are going to play this coming season in some way, shape, or form.

Yes, injuries happen. And this group has already been pretty substantially impacted by injury. Baron Browning -- a projected starter -- is currently unavailable due to an arthroscopic procedure on his knee. We're not exactly sure when he will be ready to go, but Bonitto has stepped up in the absence of Browning.

And he will be a player in focus for this first preseason game. We need to see Bonitto not only flying around the edge and making an impact as a pass rusher, but we need to see him stuffing the run, maybe playing some special teams, and really just proving overall that he's ready to make a regular season impact by dominating the Cardinals' reserve offensive linemen.

Or whoever they trot out there at the beginning of this game.

3. Ja'Quan McMillian, cornerback (no. 35)

The Denver Broncos are going to need to have depth at the cornerback position. If recent history tells us anything, it's that the top four or five guys -- at least -- are going to see some action this season at the cornerback position. With three guys in the lineup the majority of the time (including the nickel spot), it's inevitable that your depth is going to be tested at some point.

Thankfully for the Denver Broncos, depth at the cornerback position doesn't appear to be an issue. Although rookie Riley Moss is out for another handful of weeks, Ja'Quan McMillian is a player you'll want to be keeping an eye on not only in this first preseason game but all the way throughout preseason action.

McMillian was an All-American during his time at East Carolina. He's a ball-hawk who has tremendous instincts and reactive quickness, but part of the reason he went undrafted last year is a lack of ideal measurables. He's 5-foot-9, but can play outside corner or inside the nickel.

McMillian got a great test late last season when he was tasked with covering Mike Williams and other Chargers receivers in the Broncos' final regular season game. Aside from the fact that he got robbed of a pick-six in that game, McMillian's debut was outstanding.

That momentum seems to have carried into training camp this offseason as he's taken a huge jump from developmental prospect to potentially the CB4 of this team with future starter upside.

4. Marquez Callaway, wide receiver (no. 11)

At this point, are we keeping an eye on the last guy standing at the wide receiver position? Tim Patrick is done for the year. KJ Hamler was waived due to a heart condition keeping him out for the entire preseason. Brandon Johnson recently went down with an ankle injury that could cause him to miss a couple of weeks.

Let's take a head count of which guys are still left that could be worth watching in the preseason, shall we?

All kidding aside, former Saints receiver Marquez Callaway has a chance to really establish himself as arguably the WR3 for this team with a strong preseason performance. Callaway's experience in Sean Payton's offense certainly raises the level of expectation from the outside looking in. He hasn't been making major headlines coming out of training camp, but it does sound like he's been doing a solid job out there.

Callaway had a pretty big season with the Saints in 2021 as the primary relief player without Michael Thomas in the lineup. His mini breakout that year was followed by a disappointing year in 2022 in which he was not utilized nearly as much by the Saints as when Sean Payton was the head coach.

Callaway is still young, and his precedence of production with the Saints means people will be expecting him to crush it in the preseason.

5. Backup offensive linemen

Although the playmakers will get the headlines, one primary area of focus for the Denver Broncos in the preseason is going to be the offensive line. Specifically, we need to keep an eye on the depth of this team on the offensive line.

The Broncos' offensive line, just like every other position group on this roster, has been tested in its depth for the majority of the last handful of years. We're already seeing it unfold in a handful of ways with Garett Bolles getting some planned days off coming off of injury and Mike McGlinchey missing the first few days of camp due to a personal matter as well as now missing a couple of weeks because of injury.

The backup tackles right now are Cam Fleming and Isaiah Prince, and those two guys playing well in the preseason will be crucial to not only helping everyone sleep at night but also helping the Broncos get a truly clean evaluation of everyone else offensively.

And it's not just the backup tackles that will be in focus. The interior offensive line depth is going to be worth watching as well. The Broncos currently project to have arguably the best guard duo in the league in Ben Powers and Quinn Meinerz, but what happens (or who steps up) if one of those guys goes down?

We'll see how far along these players have come under the coaching of Zach Strief and which players the Broncos will be able to rely on.