MINNEAPOLIS — The Broncos stomped the Vikings 33-6 in their first of three preseason games in Minnesota on Saturday. 

The Broncos played without a good chunk of their starters, from left tackle Garett Bolles to outside linebacker Von Miller. In total, the Broncos rested 14 starters, including all 11 on defense. But that gave room for plenty of young players, mostly rookies, to stand out. 

Here are the top observations from the game:

First quarter

Star: RB Javonte Williams. The rookie running back came ready to play in his NFL debut, ripping off 11- and 13-yard runs on his first two carries. With starting running back Melvin Gordon not playing and Mike Boone out with an injury, Williams only played on two drives, rushing five times for 29 yards. 

“I was anxious to see him,” coach Vic Fangio said, “because you can look at running backs all you want in practice and they can do good and get better, but ultimately the No. 1 job of a running back is to be able to make people miss or break tackles and he was able to do that. And you can only find that in a game.”

Highlight: Lock to Hamler. The best play of the first quarter came from quarterback Drew Lock and wide receiver KJ Hamler, who connected on an 80-yard touchdown pass, in which Hamler got behind the entire Minnesota defense as Lock hit him in stride. Hamler caught two catches for 105 yards, while Lock was 5 for 7 with 151 yards passing and two touchdowns.

“I read the coverage, read the safety and the corners and stuff and it was just like we planned,” Hamler said. “I just ran by them. That’s really all.” 

You absolutely love to see it. 💣@DrewLock23 x @Kj_hamler📺: @nflnetwork pic.twitter.com/syovmzeXfy

— Denver Broncos (@Broncos) August 14, 2021

Second quarter

Star: OLB Andre Mintze. An undrafted rookie from Vanderbilt, Mintze played a good chunk of Saturday’s game, recording a sack in the second quarter. Mintze is fighting to make the 53-man roster with seventh-round pick Jonathon Cooper and second-year outside linebacker Derrek Tuszka. 

Highlight: Surtain’s pick-6. Rookie cornerback Pat Surtain II, the Broncos’ first-round pick, lived up to the hype Saturday, recording a pass breakup in the first quarter and having a pick-6 in the second quarter. 

PS2 with the PICK-6 🎮Not a bad debut, @PatSurtainll! 📺: @nflnetwork pic.twitter.com/fg5QBr7jKD

— Denver Broncos (@Broncos) August 14, 2021

Third quarter

Star: WR Trinity Benson. Having been on the practice squad the last two seasons, Benson is looking to make his first 53-man roster and he continued to make a strong case Saturday. Benson caught his second touchdown of the game in the third quarter, a 4-yard pass from quarterback Teddy Bridgewater. Benson had four catches for 36 yards and two touchdowns. 

“Obviously he played well,” Fangio said. “Caught a couple good balls. I’ll have to look at the tape in its totality, but yes, he’s doing good.” 

Highlight: Sterns’ pass breakup. Rookie safety Caden Sterns, a fifth-round pick out of Texas, has had a tremendous camp and that didn’t stop against the Vikings. Sterns had a big pass breakup in the back of the end zone in the third quarter in what looked like a sure-touchdown for Minnesota. Sterns had six total tackles in the game. 

“I thought he played well,” Fangio said. “Looked to me like he was active and in control of himself out there. I thought he took a little bit of hair of a step back this week. I talked to him before the game about that, and he got back to what we had been seeing up to that point, and hopefully that will be a good lesson for him.” 

Fourth quarter

Star: OLB Jonathon Cooper. The seventh-round pick out of Ohio State had a nice day overall, but had a big tackle for loss on a third down in the fourth quarter. He didn’t record a sack, but came close several times. 

Highlight: Locke’s tackle. Safety P.J. Locke had a nice game, with his best play being a hard tackle on Minnesota quarterback Kellen Mond that kept Mond from picking up a first down. Locke finished with five tackles.