Denver was already without Courtland Sutton, Jaylen Waddle and J.K. Dobbins, and none of them saw the field here either. Atlanta, meanwhile, is bracing for a season without linebacker James Pearce Jr., who drew an 8-game suspension this week. Neither absence mattered much once Stidham got rolling and Denver's top defensive grouping went to work, forcing empty possessions before either team's reserves even got a look.
Adam Prentice punched in a 1-yard touchdown on Denver's opening drive, and by early in the second quarter the Broncos were already up 17-0 — a laugher before most fans had found their seats. Atlanta's offense never found any footing behind its projected QB1, an inauspicious first step for a Falcons team that handed Cooper Rush rotational reps as the backup plan Kevin Stefanski signed off on this week.
Denver closed last season 3-2 in its final five games before a January loss to New England, while Atlanta finished on a four-game heater, capped by a nail-biter over New Orleans. None of that carries over to an exhibition slate where rosters are still being built, but it's a reminder of the talent gap on paper heading into this one.
The bigger story for both teams is what happens away from the box score. Bijan Robinson's three-year extension and Drake London's continued growth as Atlanta's WR1 give the Falcons a real offensive core to build around once Tagovailoa or Penix settles in as QB1. Denver's own backfield picture is taking shape too, with RJ Harvey expected to carry a bigger workload in Year 2 and Jonah Coleman turning heads at camp — reinforcements that didn't even need to touch the field Friday to matter.
None of it changes what Friday actually was: a lopsided tune-up that means nothing for either team's record but plenty for roster battles still being decided. Denver's group looked like the more finished product from snap one, and it wasn't particularly close.