Broncos Roundtable: In what way will George Paton be most different from John Elway?

For the first time in a decade, John Elway no longer has final say on the Denver Broncos’ roster. George Paton now has that power.

With Elway remaining with the organization as the president of football operations, Paton will be able to bounce ideas off Denver’s former general manager. But when push comes to shove, the new general manager will have final say on personnel decisions.

The DNVR Broncos Crew breaks down what the biggest difference will be under the new regime in Denver.

IN WHAT WAY WILL GEORGE PATON BE MOST DIFFERENT FROM JOHN ELWAY?

Zac

Paying Broncos, not outsiders — The days of winning free agency are over in Denver. Instead of making headlines left and right with flashy free-agent signings, the Broncos will be spending that money on re-signing their own players.

Drafting and developing is now Denver’s “lifeblood,” as Paton put it.

Of course, drafting and developing isn’t a bad strategy for any general manager to have. Saying that, Justin Simmons didn’t have a long-term deal lined up with Elway as the general manager. However, Paton has made it very clear Simmons will be in Denver for 2021 by franchise tagging him and stating, “We are completely focused on making sure Justin remains a big part of the Denver Broncos for many years to come.”

In the first half of Elway’s tenure as the general manager, spending big in free agency worked to perfection as Denver landed players such as Peyton Manning, DeMarcus Ware and Aqib Talib, to name a few. However, the past five years haven’t worked out as well as the expensive signings haven’t turned into great production. Free agency won’t be the lifeblood of the team anymore.

Instead of spending money in free agency, the Broncos will be spending their money on re-signing their own players, especially the ones they drafted.

Mase

They will focus on draft-pick accumulation — Last year, the Vikings had 15 selections, the most of any team in the 7-round draft era, which dates back to 1994. This is obviously an extreme example, but having more picks than rounds is typical for the Vikings, who have turned a total of 90 picks since 2010 (77 in their original allotment, plus 13 compensatory choices) into 111 selections, thus gaining an average of 1.9 picks per year.

You do that by trading players and by trading down within the draft.

“I think our philosophy in Minnesota is try to acquire as many draft picks as you can,” Paton said on Jan. 19. “The more draft picks you have, the more flexibility you have. In the offseason you can make a trade for a player, draft day you can kind of work your way up and down the draft — if you want to go get a player, you go get them. So, we always thought it was important.”

Many teams operate with a philosophy in which they look at late-round draft picks and measure the value of making them against the number of spots on the eventual 53-man roster that are not already earmarked. Thus, if a team has three picks in the sixth and seventh rounds and just one spot perceived to be available, it might try to consolidate those selections into, for example, a late fifth-round choice.

Paton sees it differently.

“The more picks, the more darts and the better chance of you hitting the bullseye,” he said. “I would like to think that would continue here.”

RK

You’ll hear the Broncos mentioned in more trade deals — I found it very notable that Paton felt compelled to say this during his very first presser with the Broncos: “I think you’re involved in every deal that’s out there and then you can discuss and collaborate and just determine if you want to make that jump.”

It’s been a while since the Broncos were involved in a true blockbuster deal, and before Deshaun Watson, it had been quite some time since the Broncos were even mentioned in such a deal.

Each year, there are big names that pop up on the trade block, as relationships grow sour or teams find themselves in bad cap positions, allowing other teams around the league to make instant upgrades.

For the right team, the right trade can elevate them to the next level. While they gave up a haul, I don’t think the Buffalo Bills have any regrets about making the jump for Stefon Diggs, as the move helped Josh Allen take the next step and helped propel the team into the AFC Championship. With Paton at the helm, I expect to see the Broncos make the jump when the time is right.

“It’s really important to be involved with everything so you don’t miss a deal that may get by you,” he said in January. “We’ll be aggressive—involved—but that doesn’t mean we’re going to jump.”