The Denver Broncos cruised to a 27-7 victory over the Atlanta Falcons on Friday in their preseason opener, pushing their winning streak in exhibition games to eight dating back to 2023.

Here are the key takeaways:

Rookie RB ready to make impact

Jonah Coleman took the handoff from Jarrett Stidham and almost immediately made a jump cut to his left. Two quick steps later, he made another cut, this time darting inside to maneuver past a would-be tackler. It went down as a 7-yard gain and a first down for Coleman, but it was also a window into why head coach Sean Payton, other Broncos offensive coaches and teammates have been so high on the rookie running back.

Coleman was quick and decisive while navigating the crowded real estate near the line of scrimmage. He rushed four times for 24 yards, and that didn’t include an impressive sprint to the edge for 9 yards that was wiped away by a penalty. He also caught a 5-yard pass that was negated by a defensive flag for illegal contact.

Payton has talked routinely in camp about Coleman being further along than other first-year backs in his ability to grasp pass-protection responsibilities. It’s a fact attributed, at least in part, to Coleman’s experience in a pro-style system at Washington that asks its running backs to contribute to all facets of the offense.

But Coleman wasn’t drafted in the fourth round just to block. The Broncos lacked punch up the middle in the run game last season after J.K. Dobbins went down with a Week 10 foot injury. Even if Dobbins can live up to his promise of playing in all 17 games for the first time in his career — or even be available for close to that many — the Broncos need other options they can rely upon to produce consistently between the tackles. It was a brief opening act, but Coleman appears to be up to the task.

Stidham with a sturdy opening act

There may not have been another Broncos player who was more eager to get on the field Friday night than Stidham. His last appearance came in the AFC Championship Game, a 10-7 loss to the New England Patriots that ended with a few painful what-ifs hanging in the air for him and the Broncos.

Stidham turned in a sharp and efficient performance Friday, completing 9 of 15 passes for 131 yards and a touchdown. It certainly didn’t wipe away all that frustration that came with falling just shy of the Super Bowl seven months ago, but it was an important step for a veteran quarterback who is trying to hold onto the job as backup to Bo Nix, who did not play Friday. Stidham whipped a pass to Pat Bryant on a comeback route for 15 yards on the game’s first play. He fired a ball up the seam to Courtland Sutton for 40 yards later in the drive to set up an opening touchdown. He evaded some pressure later in the first half to hit Jaleel McLaughlin for a 6-yard touchdown.

It was the kind of steady and productive performance Stidham has regularly turned in during his preseason appearances the past three seasons, with splashes of a deep ball that showed up with a 52-yard pass to Marvin Mims in that title-game appearance. Sam Ehlinger, who is trying to earn the backup job during his second offseason with the Broncos, played the second half and produced some nice moments. He didn’t play behind Denver’s first-team offensive line and didn’t have access to the team’s top available playmakers, but he still completed 10 of 14 passes for 67 yards and led the Broncos into field-goal range three times — though the Broncos failed to convert on two of those chances. Ehlinger helped extend drives with his feet, including a 9-yard scamper that set up a field goal in the fourth quarter.

Perhaps most importantly, both quarterbacks ran a smooth operation with Davis Webb, the team’s newly promoted offensive coordinator, calling the plays. The opening drive called by Webb was a brilliant blur — a six-play, 69-yard march that wrapped up in a little more than three minutes. The Broncos were rarely fighting the play clock. Huddles were efficient. Webb and Payton will lament converting only 5-of-14 attempts on third down, but the Broncos generally appeared in sync operationally.

Next up for Webb: Calling plays into Nix’s ear for the first time in game action during next week’s preseason home opener against the Green Bay Packers.

Rest working wonders for Sutton?

Sutton had a spectator’s view for much of Denver’s second week of training camp. The veteran wide receiver was held out of team drills for three straight practices, part of a plan presented to Sutton this offseason aimed at helping him be more fresh heading into January than he was last season.

The plan’s success, or lack thereof, can’t be determined until the end of the season, but Sutton on Friday certainly looked like a player who benefited from a couple of days of light work. Sutton caught three passes for 60 yards during his two drives of action. He hauled in a 40-yard pass from Stidham up the seam after leaping up and boxing out cornerback Mike Hughes, setting up Denver’s opening touchdown. The top highlight for Sutton, though, came during the team’s second possession, when he leaped up and hauled in a third-down pass from Stidham with one hand, securing the ball as he hit the ground on top of veteran corner C.J. Henderson, who had pinned Sutton’s other arm at his side.

Jaylen Waddle didn’t play Friday night as he continues to rehab a soft-tissue injury in his left leg, but the speedy new addition for the Broncos is expected to create more one-on-one matchups for Sutton on the perimeter. Friday provided a brief but clear reminder of what kind of headache that could be for opposing defensive coordinators.

Two undrafted rookie receivers also produced nice moments: Cameron Ross gained 28 yards on a jet-sweep rush to set up a Broncos touchdown in the first half. Joseph Manjack caught a pair of passes for 27 yards on Denver’s opening drive of the third quarter, including an impressive grab over the middle in heavy traffic.

Defensive depth on display in dominant performance

As the Falcons took the field for their fourth drive of Friday’s game, they were mirrored by a handful of Denver’s defensive starters. The reason: the first three Atlanta drives didn’t give the defense enough work.

Payton wanted his starters to see the field for roughly 15 plays in the preseason opener, but the Falcons ran only 13 plays on their first four possessions combined. It was a snapshot of the Broncos’ dominance Friday while displaying the depth that could make this one of the NFL’s top defenses.

The first nine possessions for the Falcons on Friday resulted in seven punts and two interceptions. The first of those was a pick over the middle by Riley Moss as he adjusted on a Cooper Rush throw that was behind his intended receiver. The second was produced by Jahdae Barron, who alertly snatched a ball out of the air that had been tipped by linebacker Karene Reid and then raced 97 yards for a touchdown. Barron, last year’s first-round pick, nearly had a second interception minutes later, but the ball squirted through his hands.

Outside linebackers Jonathon Cooper and Nik Bonitto combined for three pressures. Defensive end Zach Allen added one pressure among his four pass-rush snaps. Malcolm Roach tipped a ball at the line of scrimmage that resulted in Moss’  interception. Further down the depth chart, Drew Sanders, healthy in this camp after missing all of last season due to injury, had a strong bull rush in the fourth quarter that ended in a sack of Falcons quarterback Jack Strand.

In the battle to become one of Denver’s inside linebackers to make the 53-man roster, Reid’s tipped pass, which came as he made a great jump on a hitch route near the goal line, was part of a strong overall performance for the second-year player. Levelle Bailey, meanwhile, suffered an ankle injury in the first quarter and didn’t return.

Mikel Arteta has revealed he will sign a new Arsenal contract and there is no need for fans to be worried about his future.

Arteta has entered the final year of his contract with the Premier League champions – despite co-chairman Josh Kroenke saying in May that a new deal was an “upmost priority” of the club.

But Arteta says he and the club will come together to “resolve” a contract extension in “an organic way” – because he is happy at the club, and his bosses appear happy with him.

“They [the fans] don’t have to worry about any of that because I want to be here, I’m extremely happy and I feel very grateful to work with the people I work with,” said Arteta about his contract talks.

“When we have the possibility, we will resolve that. That’s it.

“Everybody feels comfortable that the timing of the contract is not going to be an issue because my will certainly is to be here and I’m very happy here. My feeling from the club is the same one. That’s why everyone is doing things in a very organic way.”

Does Arteta have enough attacking firepower this season?

Arteta also addressed questions about whether his team have enough firepower this season to reclaim the Premier League title – and win the other competitions as well.

Despite winning the Premier League and reaching the Champions League final, Arteta’s Arsenal were accused of not being too attacking last term – although there was praise for their defensive solidity.

Arsenal have added Bruno Guimaraes and Christos Tzolis to their midfield and attack this season – having sold Leandro Trossard to Besiktas.

Apart from that, the Gunners have mostly the same midfielders and forwards that ended last season – despite showing an interest in Vinicius Junior, Julian Alvarez and Bradley Barcola in the attacking areas.

Asked if he has enough attacking quality up front at the moment, Arteta replied: “If they are fit, yes.

“But when you look last year at the amount of days, games, months that we missed a lot of our important players and players with a lot of goal threat, the manner that we sustained to have the season that we had, I think is remarkable.

“It talks about the team playing and conducting, and I think it’s something that the team deserves credit for.

“We’re going to prefer to elevate our level, for sure, expecting that the rest will do the same, because that’s traditionally what happened in the league in the last few years. And that’s what we have planned this season, and we want to evolve it.

“I have to prepare a team that is capable of winning in whatever the context is: because we’re not good enough on the day, because the opponent is so good, because the differences in games. That’s my job, that’s how I will prepare the team.”