Broncos' First Big Extension Priority Should Be in the Front Office

The Denver Broncos have multiple extensions to complete this year. Key starters on both sides of the ball are set to be free agents, with defensive linemen Zach Allen, John Franklin-Myers, and Malcolm Roach, along with All-Pro rush linebacker Nik Bonitto, and No. 1 receiver Courtland Sutton, representing just the top of the team's to-do list.

While the Broncos can afford to hand each of them an extension, the bigger question is whether they actually will. However, despite Denver's plethora of contract-year players, its first extension needs to be at the front office level. 

Broncos general manager George Paton is in the final year of his contract, and while he's had some miscues, he landed a great partner in Sean Payton. Together, they've led the Broncos on a fast-track rebuild.

Now, there's no doubt that Paton is a big reason the Broncos were in a rebuild position in the first place, after the disastrous Russell Wilson trade and the botched hiring of Nathaniel Hackett as the head coach in 2022. That led to a lot of resources, both financial and draft picks, being wasted. The Wilson contract remains an anchor around this team's neck for one more season.

Fortunately, the damage of the Wilson trade and extension wasn't as bad as it could’ve been with co-owner/CEO Greg Penner stepping in as skeptical voice to prevent what could have been a fully guaranteed seven-year deal worth $350 million. However, despite that those blunders, Paton has done well scouting and drafting players, and again, he found a partner in Payton to help turn this team around. 

In Paton’s first draft with the Broncos, he could’ve taken the easy way out by drafting a quarterback in Justin Fields or Mac Jones, but he stayed true to his board and took Patrick Surtain II. That was a franchise-altering move in many ways, giving the Broncos a Defensive Player of the Year, who can help dictate what the defensive coordinator can do. Surtian has proven to be a tremendous value. 

That 2021 draft landed the reigning DPoY, one of the best guards in the NFL in Quinn Meinerz, and a starting pass rusher in Jonathon Cooper. Getting three starters, with two of them being among the best at their position, is a great draft haul. 

In the 2022 draft, Paton's success wasn’t as great, but there were many questions about the Hackett coaching staff's involvement in the selections, which proved to be a failure almost immediately. Despite those issues, the Broncos still found a great pass rusher in All-Pro Nik Bonitto and their current starting center in Luke Wattenberg. It was still a decent draft. 

The 2023 draft, the first with Payton at Paton's side, might be the most questionable so far. Marvin Mims Jr. is an All-Pro returner, whom the Broncos need more out of on offense, and Riley Moss is a capable starting cornerback, but he has struggled to stay healthy. Both of Denver's hits in 2023 still have questions, and the other three picks, linebacker Drew Sanders, safety JL Skinner, and center Alex Forsyth, are still unproven. Sanders and Skinner are fighting to earn a roster spot this year. 

The Broncos' last two draft hauls are still adapting and growing in the NFL, but the early returns from the 2024 class are extremely promising. Some of the credit goes to Payton and his coaching staff, but Paton has proven to be a valuable asset when it comes to his scouting ability.

Paton has also been mostly astute when it comes to free-agent signings, and his efforts to build and transform the front office have be fruitful, not only in how the Broncos have performed as a team, but in how the NFL obviously views his staff. During this offseason's hiring cycle, Paton's front office was plundered by NFL peers, with assistant GM Darren Mougey taking the general manager job with the New York Jets.  

The Takeaway

On one hand, Paton deserves criticism for the poor decisions he's made, and there have been plenty, but he is also very deserving of credit for where the Broncos are now. That makes him worthy of an extension from the Walton-Penner ownership group.

Paton was handed a tricky situation when he was hired to come to Denver as the GM under John Elway (initially), and two of his first few big moves (Wilson/Hackett) only exacerbated the team's problems. Still, Paton has been key in helping the Broncos emerge from that situation and, in so doing, emerge from it much faster than anyone expected. 

On top of that, both Paton and Payton have discussed how crucial the continuity has been to the Broncos regaining their footing. That continuity has paid dividends in many ways, some of which go unseen by the public. It would be unwise to deviate from that by risking Paton's contract expiring.

"You just look back to our first draft, I feel so much more settled, and I feel like this is the most prepared I’ll be for a draft in large part because of the continuity we’ve had," Paton said back in April.

Payton concurs, and the benefits of that continuity include the general manager.

“With regard to continuity, clearly if your ownership—and it’s not just your ownership is in place, but the right ownership," Payton said back in February at the NFL Combine. "I would say that for Greg [Penner] and [Owner] Carrie [Walton Penner] and the Walton-Penner Family Ownership Group—[having] the right ownership in place along with head coach, ‘GM’ and quarterback is a good start.”

Before the Broncos extend their players, all of whom are deserving, the team needs to negotiate a new deal with its general manager.