Rookie OL Dalton Risner receives impressive PFF grade in Broncos debut

The Denver Broncos have one preseason game under their belt, emerging from the Hall of Fame Game as victors over the Atlanta Falcons, 14-10.

Head coach Vic Fangio surprised many by deciding to play several starters. Fangio’s thought process centered on the trenches, with starters on both the offensive and defensive line seeing time.

“It’s a new combination there offensively with the center, left guard and left tackle,” Fangio said following the game. “We just got them a handful of plays just so they get a feel of playing together in a game, albeit a preseason game. I think they played somewhere between eight and 10 plays, and that’s what [Offensive Line Coach] Mike [Munchak] wanted to get for them, so we did.”

Munchak was the impetus for Garett Bolles, Dalton Risner and Connor McGovern seeing snaps in the HoFG. It’s very important for these still relatively inexperienced players, including the rookie, Risner, to get experience together in order to form cohesion.

While the trio of starters were on the field, QB Kevin Hogan was kept clean, while the Broncos’ ground game picked up some big yards. On Denver’s second possession, the Broncos rattled off an eight-play, 51-yard scoring drive capped off by a Khalfani Muhammad touchdown plunge from the three-yard line.

Following the game, Pro Football Focus revealed their highest-graded Broncos from preseason Game 1 and on the offensive side of the ball, it was Dalton Risner who finished No. 2 with a 72.5 grade. An impressive debut for the Broncos’ second-round pick.

In the handful of snaps he received, Risner was a road-grader in the running game and wall of resistance in pass protection. Risner’s story is a great one, as he hails from Wiggins, CO, a rural town out on the Eastern Plains.

He grew up rooting for the Broncos and one day dreamed that he would suit up for the Orange and Blue. The first time he was able to don the uniform in front of the home crowd during last Saturday’s scrimmage at Broncos Stadium at Mile High, he received the warmest of welcomes from the fans.

“Honestly, it was surreal,” Risner said last weekend. “I walked out, I’m in a stadium a part of the Denver Broncos. The fans welcomed me. It was an unreal experience. I can’t help but smile thinking about it.”

It’s only one exhibition game of which he only appeared in about a dozen snaps, but Dalton Risner appears to be on a more-than-steady trajectory. For what it's worth, the Broncos' highest-graded offensive player was Kevin Hogan (80.7), with right tackle Elijah Wilkinson rounding out the top-3 at 72.5.

Follow Chad on Twitter @ChadNJensen.