The Broncos ended the preseason with a 28-19 win on Saturday against the New Orleans Saints. Here are grades for the Denver victory:

Offense

Another slow start for the first-team offense is a mild concern. It felt a lot like the 49ers preseason game with quarterback Bo Nix responding well to early adversity. His connection with veteran wide receiver Courtland Sutton was on full display with four catches for 83 yards and a touchdown. Quarterback Sam Ehlinger played nearly three full quarters and led the offense on four scoring drives (two field goals and two touchdowns). Run blocking and ground production were uneven, though, with still more questions than answers with the regular season now on the horizon.

Grade: C+

After uneven preseason start, Bo Nix and Broncos offensive starters close strong in 28-19 win over Saints

Defense

The Saints totaled five scoring drives but were held to field goals on four of those possessions. Denver logged four sacks between outside linebacker Jonathon Cooper, defensive lineman Eyioma Uwazurike, defensive end Sai’vion Jones and outside linebacker Que Robinson — who forced a fumble recovered by inside linebacker Karene Reid. The Broncos also stuffed New Orleans on a fourth-down attempt. Denver’s defense, from starters to depth players, met high expectations over three preseason games. That’s good news for a Denver offense that is still searching for consistency and might need some help in early regular season games. Defense projects as the real strength of this team.

Grade: A

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Special teams

Rookie punter Jeremy Crawshaw’s only boot, a low line-drive attempt, netted just 33 yards and set up a Saints field goal. The positive news? Kicker Will Lutz made all three of his field goal attempts (32, 29 and 25 yards). Running back Tyler Badie returned a kickoff 47 yards to help fuel Denver’s first touchdown drive of the game. Broncos special teams coordinator Darren Rizzi is considered among the best at his position in the NFL. Does he still have confidence that Crawshaw is the starting punter? That’s the biggest special teams question mark after concluding the preseason.

Grade: B-

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Coaching

The Broncos won all three games in the preseason. Does that mean anything? Probably not. They don’t give out Super Bowl trophies for game results that don’t count. But it’s an encouraging sign that coach Sean Payton is leading a confident group that expects to win no matter the circumstances. He also won a coaches’ challenge in the second quarter that overturned a New Orleans first down. It’s hard to argue against his strategy this preseason. It appears that Payton has the full trust of his team.

Grade: A

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