The Denver Broncos faced the Arizona Cardinals in their first preseason game last week. The Broncos built up a 10-point lead by halftime and were one touchdown ahead of the Cardinals with a few minutes remaining. A two-point Cardinals conversion on a late-game touchdown all but sealed the comeback victory at State Farm Stadium.

Three Broncos quarterbacks saw snaps under center on Friday, combining for 190 passing yards, one touchdown and one interception on 37 total passing attempts. Wide receivers Jerry Jeudy and Courtland Sutton led Denver's receivers with 40 and 35 receiving yards, respectively. Jeudy scored a touchdown off of a pass from Russell Wilson, who found the fourth-year receiver on an easy route to the endzone in the second quarter.

Before Denver kicks off against the San Francisco 49ers at 6:30 p.m. MDT on Saturday, who are some Broncos players whose stock has risen throughout the 2023 NFL Preseason so far?

Jaleel McLaughlin

McLaughlin, who signed with the Broncos as an undrafted free agent in April, finished the night with 20 rushing yards on four attempts. He caught a 12-yard screen pass from quarterback Ben DiNucci to earn a clutch first down in the fourth quarter. The former Youngstown State running back put the Broncos up by one possession in the fourth quarter, punching in a four-yard run on first-and-goal with less than two minutes remaining.

“It's a surreal moment,” McLaughlin said of his touchdown, via DenverBroncos.com Digital media intern John Riker. “Shoutout to the guys up front, they made it easy for me. … And then it's like a different feeling once you get into the back of the end zone and actually score, you have guys around you yelling, that [are] happy for what you just accomplished together.”

McLaughlin took spots behind running backs Javonte Williams, Samaje Perine, Tyler Badie and Tony Jones Jr. on the unofficial depth chart the Broncos released earlier this month. If he can keep making plays when Denver needs them the most, he could be an option for the Broncos to continue looking out for as the preseason goes on.

Ja'Quan McMillian

McMillan ended last Friday's matchup against the Cardinals with six sacks, one sack, one tackle for loss and one quarterback hit. He sacked Cardinals quarterback Clayton Tune for a 12-yard loss in the third quarter. The 5-foot-9 cornerback played in 46 total snaps on Friday's matchup, including 24 as a wide cornerback, eight as a slot cornerback, three in kick coverage and three on field goal or extra point blocks, according to Pro Football Focus.

McMillian played and started in one game for the Broncos in 2022. He recorded seven tackles and played in every one of the team's snaps on defense during a 31-28 win over the Los Angeles Chargers in Week 18.

Nik Bonitto

Bonitto, a former second-round selection for the Broncos, finished the night with three tackles, 0.5 sacks and one quarterback hit. He took a spot behind linebacker Randy Gregory in the team's depth chart.

The former Oklahoma linebacker didn't have lofty expectations for himself during the team's.

“I don't want to put lofty goals out there, but I feel like I'm definitely going to be more productive,” Bonitto said, via DenverBroncos.com Lead Writer Aric DiLalla. “I'm definitely, I feel like, going to be more disruptive. I feel like you're going to see more of a confident player. Last year I wasn't very confident going out there. I kind of wasn't the guy that I know I can be when I was out there. Definitely more confident.”

If he continues to play with confidence, he can help boost a Broncos defense with a Pro Football Focus regular-season pass-rushing ranking of 66.4 in 2022. The figure put them at 28th in the NFL.