The Denver Broncos general manager is George Paton. Paton was hired as the Broncos’ GM on January 13, 2021 after serving 14 seasons with the Minnesota Vikings front office. He replaced John Elway, who had been the Broncos’ GM since 2011 before transitioning to president of football operations in 2021.
The general manager is the highest-ranking executive in a team’s football operations department. The GM is responsible for all aspects of building and maintaining the team’s roster, including overseeing scouts and coaches, negotiating player contracts, managing the salary cap, and evaluating talent in the draft and free agency. The GM reports directly to the team owner and works closely with the head coach. The Broncos have had eight general managers in franchise history, with George Paton being the most recent hire.
George Paton’s Background
Before joining the Broncos, George Paton spent the past 14 seasons with the Minnesota Vikings in a variety of front office roles. He was hired by the Vikings as a scout in 2007 and worked his way up to assistant GM under long-time Minnesota GM Rick Spielman. With the Vikings, Paton oversaw both college and pro scouting and assisted in draft preparation and free agency planning. During Paton’s time in Minnesota, the Vikings made the playoffs six times and had winning seasons in nine of Paton’s 14 years there.
Prior to his stint with the Vikings, Paton worked as a scout for the Chicago Bears from 2001 to 2007. He got his start in the NFL as a scouting intern for the Bears in 1997 after playing football in college at UCLA and working as a graduate assistant coach. In his 25 years working in the NFL, Paton has established a reputation as a strong talent evaluator and roster builder through the draft and free agency. His experience made him an attractive GM candidate for Denver.
George Paton’s Hiring by the Broncos
George Paton was hired by Broncos’ president of football operations John Elway on January 13, 2021 to become the team’s new general manager. This was part of a front office shakeup following five straight seasons without a playoff berth in Denver from 2016 to 2020.
In his introductory press conference, Paton outlined his vision for building a championship contender in Denver through smart decisions in all areas of football operations. Paton said: “You want your team to reflect your values and what you stand for. You want tough, you want smart, you want competitive. You want guys that love football, guys that are team guys.”
Paton took over for Elway, the Hall of Fame quarterback who had been GM since 2011 and led the Broncos to a Super Bowl 50 title. But Denver struggled after that championship and Elway decided to hire Paton in a GM role while remaining as president of football operations himself. This allowed Elway to step aside from day-to-day GM responsibilities but still oversee Paton in rebuilding the Broncos.
George Paton’s First Year as GM
In his first season as GM in 2021, George Paton faced major decisions on the Broncos’ quarterback situation and made several key moves to begin reshaping Denver’s roster:
- Signed veteran QB Teddy Bridgewater as a free agent to compete with incumbent Drew Lock
- Drafted CB Patrick Surtain II with 9th overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft
- Did not pick up 5th year option on rising star LB Bradley Chubb’s rookie contract
- Traded Von Miller, the team’s all-time sack leader, to the LA Rams for draft picks
- Signed several free agents to bolster the defensive line and secondary
The result was a 7-10 season for the Broncos in 2021. While still missing the playoffs, it was an improvement over the previous two 5-11 seasons. Paton received praise for many of his smart, calculated roster moves in his first year steering the Broncos.
George Paton’s Management Style
In his short time as GM so far, George Paton has demonstrated several defining traits in his management approach:
- Methodical & Analytical: Paton gathers as much information as possible and makes moves with careful consideration rather than emotion.
- Collaborative: He believes in teamwork and values input from scouts, coaches, and staff in decisions.
- Disciplined: Paton exhibits discipline in roster building and financial/salary cap management. He avoids risky decisions.
- Scouting background: With his scouting roots, Paton relies heavily on player evaluation done by both pro and college scouts within the organization.
Overall, colleagues describe Paton as very intelligent with a calm demeanor. Broncos head coach Nathaniel Hackett has praised his open communication and “team over ego” mentality in working together rebuilding the roster.
George Paton’s Vision for the Broncos
In speaking about his GM philosophy, George Paton emphasizes building the Broncos through the NFL draft first and foremost. Two of his top priorities seem to be:
- Upgrading the quarterback position – Paton has acknowledged this as critical after years of uncertainty at the game’s most important position in Denver following Peyton Manning’s retirement.
- Accumulating draft capital – Paton aims to stockpile premium draft picks through trades, like the deal he made sending Von Miller to the Rams for 2nd and 3rd rounders in the 2022 draft.
Paton has also talked about the importance of acquiring young talent and developing those players within the organization. He has shown a willingness to rely on younger, cheaper options rather than spend big on external free agent fixes. Paton also values cohesion and collaboration in the front office and on the coaching staff. His goal is crafting a unified vision for how the Broncos should be built and playing on both sides of the ball.
Conclusion
George Paton has quickly put his stamp on the Broncos as an analytical, methodical roster builder with a disciplined approach since being hired as general manager in 2021. He has emphasized building through the draft, developing young talent, and accumulating additional premium picks through trades. The early returns have been promising, with Denver showing improvement in Paton’s first year on the job. Broncos ownership, coaches, players and fans are hoping Paton’s vision will lead to greater on-field success and return the franchise to its championship pedigree.