Elijah Garcia is among the Broncos looking to stack quality preseason games

SANTA CLARA, Calif. — Plenty of players can flash and make an impression once in the preseason.

But to do it again — that’s the sign of something meaningful. Just as coaches want to see players stack practices … well, the same holds true for games. Consecutive solid games under the bright lights offer an indication that a young prospect might be more than you anticipated, particularly when rising from the late-round ranks.

That being said, the practices matter, too. Because as Sean Payton noted, those are like the quizzes. Games represent the tests.

And let’s face it, you can compensate for shaky work on the quizzes by nailing the games.

“It all gets evaluated. We talk about it twice a week. We update it with how they’re doing. You begin to formulate opinions,” Payton said.

“Someone asked me the other day, ‘Is it more game, or is it more practice?’ Honestly, I think it’s the whole body of work. When we were in school, we had quizzes and we had tests, and the game would be a test. If you messed around on a bunch of quizzes — like I used to — then the test was important because you didn’t do well on the quizzes. It’s all part of the equation.”

And for some Broncos, the question is this: Can they stack two good tests together?

These four players will look to do precisely that against the 49ers on Saturday.

DE ELIJAH GARCIA

Garcia’s path to this moment is fascinating. He honed his trade last year on the Los Angeles Rams’ practice squad, watching perennial All-Pro Aaron Donald closely. His length is impressive for his position. At Rice University, he was pigeonholed into nose-tackle work for a while simply because he was the biggest defensive lineman the Owls possessed.

Last week, he exploded with a pair of sacks against the Cardinals. He doesn’t need to repeat that sort of performance. But continued, consistent pressure would make it hard for the Broncos to consider going into the season without him.

RB JALEEL McLAUGHLIN

Last week, the nameplate on the back of his jersey had a misspelled surname. One expects that to be corrected this time around. McLaughlin himself laughed it off, noting that the spelling — with a “G” added immediately after the “Mc” in his last name — mirrored the pronunciation. He joked that the misspelled nameplate would allow people to know the correct pronunciation.

But there is no mis-stating his impact. And based on his use in practice this week, taking handoffs from Russell Wilson, it appears that his play drew attention.

CB JA’QUAN McMILLIAN

It’s most just at cornerback where McMillian is making a strong push. His persistence and hustle jumped out on kickoff coverage last week, impressing special-teams coordinator Ben Kotwica.

“[The film] shoed ‘J-Mac’ making two key tackles,” Kotwica said, also adding that Delarrin Turner-Yell impressed with his “physical play.”

Making those players’ moments possible was Kotwica’s decision to have shorter kickoffs.

“We want to give those opportunities. You just have to balance it with what’s going on within the parameter of the game. That’s how players are going to get noticed — by giving them the opportunity to make a tackle. That’s why we’re putting the ball into play — again, within the parameters of the game—so that those players, like ‘J-Mac,’ can go out and display their skills.”

OT ALEX PALCZEWSKI

The injury to Mike McGlinchey opened up opportunities for some of the other tackles on the roster. Isaiah Prince and Quinn Bailey each saw their workloads transform in the wake of McGlinchey’s knee sprain. But the undrafted rookie from Illinois could be the most intriguing member of the group.

A six-year college veteran who earned third-team All-America honors last year, Palczewski now has a fighting chance to stick on the 53-player roster. If he can learn flexibility between left and right tackle, he’ll enhance his chances.

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