Throughout the preseason, we heavily emphasize identifying potential impact players throughout the season that others may not recognize as they aren't necessarily "stars". In our 'Preseason Players to Watch' series, we highlight potentially noteworthy players in each night's game(s) that may be impactful for fantasy football, both in the 2024 season and beyond.

Here are our top players to watch for in tonight's preseason action:

Bo Nix (QB - Denver Broncos) - vs GB, 8:00 PM on NFL Network

Jarrett Stidham started the Broncos' preseason opener last week and didn't play overwhelmingly good or bad, going 4/7 for 37 yards and an INT (caused by Samaje Perine juggling an easy catch for 5-10 yards), but it did leave an opportunity for rookie Bo Nix to narrow the gap with a strong performance.

Nix did just that, ceding Stidham but still playing with the starters, going 15/21 for 125 yards and a TD plus an additional 3 for 17 yards on the ground. He looked solid and quite comfortable in his debut, making a true push to be the Broncos' Week 1 starting QB.

This week's preseason game vs the Packers will likely decide the Broncos' starter. Another strong showing from Nix (or conversely, another underwhelming showing from Stidham) and the rookie 1st rounder from Oregon will likely be the one under center for the Broncos' season opener against the Seahawks.

AJ Dillon (RB - Green Bay Packers) - at DEN, 8:00 PM on NFL Network

Since being drafted in the 2nd round in 2020, AJ Dillon has had a steady decline in efficiency with each year, dropping from 5.3 YPC as a rookie to just 3.4 YPC in 2023 - a trend that contributed to the Packers' drafting of Marshawn Lloyd in the 3rd round of the 2024 NFL Draft, even despite re-signing Dillon in free agency this offseason.

After a far-from-ideal camp and start to the preseason last week, taking 4 carries for just 2 yards, including three consecutive attempts from a 2nd-and-1 that failed to convert a first down, Dillon faced significant backlash in the media. Dillon was thrown a lifeline last week with rookie Marshawn Lloyd suffering a hamstring injury that clouds his status for the opening weeks of the season. If not for that injury, we'd be looking at Dillon as a potential roster cut.

This week will be crucial for the understanding of the status of Dillon and the Packers' backfield. Depending on how much, when, and how effectively Dillon plays against Denver could dictate whether Lloyd will be the handcuff option to Josh Jacobs or if Dillon will hold onto the RB2/handcuff role for the early portion of the season.

Chris Olave (WR - New Orleans Saints) - at SF, 8:00 PM on FOX

It hasn't been confirmed that the starters will play this week for New Orleans, but seeing as the starters got two series of work in the preseason opener and the 49ers canceled this week's joint practices with the Saints due to injury (cutting into the Saints' starters' time against opposing starters), one would expect the likes of Derek Carr, Alvin Kamara, and Chris Olave to get some action before presumably sitting out the preseason finale.

It's no secret that Chris Olave is the definitive number-one target for Derek Carr and the Saints' passing offense, leading the team with 138 targets in 2023: 52 more than the next-highest player on the Saints (Alvin Kamara, 86) and nearly double the next-highest receiver (Rashid Shaheed, 75).

I don't know if we'll see that heavy of a disparity in 2024, but if the preseason opener is any indicator, we may see it yet again. In the Saints' preseason opener last week, Derek Carr played two series and threw the ball 6 times; one was a throw-away, one was a check-down to Jamaal Williams, and FOUR were targets to Olave.

We know what we're going to get out of the Saints' offense and Derek Carr, which is why I'm a bit more optimistic of Olave in dynasty formats, but the potential is there in re-draft leagues for a potential PPR-gem on volume alone. I want to see if last week's abnormally heavy target share was just a one-off event or if that's the Saints' game plan for attacking defenses this year (as opposed to the Alvin Kamara-centric offense last year).