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George Paton has been serving as the general manager of the Denver Broncos since 2021 and has made some bold moves along the way. Most notably, he pulled off a massive trade with the Seattle Seahawks during the 2022 offseason to acquire Russell Wilson. He followed that by making him one of the highest-paid players in NFL history.
Just two years later, the trade has already proven to be a disaster. Wilson was benched towards the end of his second season and is now reportedly set to be released during the offseason. The controversial decision to cut him will cost the franchise an enormous $85 million in dead cap money.
Broncos fans have been extremely frustrated by the way that Paton has handled this situation, with many going on social media to roast the general manager's decisions.
Many Broncos fans want to see George Paton fired after the Russell Wilson disaster, rather than letting him be in charge of finding his replacement this year as well. Jarrett Stidham closed out last season as the starter, but he is unlikely to be a long-term solution. Denver will likely explore its options in the 2024 NFL draft, as well as in free agency, for their next quarterback.
Despite the fans' wishes, it doesn't seem like Paton is going anywhere in the immediate future. He will likely have the opportunity to amend his decision on Wilson, but choosing the right quarterback hasn't been the only misstep along the way during his three years as general manager.
List of Broncos GM George Paton's missteps in Denver
It's been an overall tough run for George Paton as the general manager of the Denver Broncos. All executives in his position will surely make their own mistakes in hindsight, but Paton has epically failed with some of his bold moves.
Here are some of his biggest missteps:
- Trading away multiple premium draft picks and valuable players in exchange for an aging and declining Russell Wilson
- Paying Russell Wilson $250 million before ever taking a snap as the Broncos' quarterback
- Hiring first-time coach Nathaniel Hackett and firing him before completing one full season
- Signing Randy Gregory to be an elite edge rusher, despite him having never been one before and having a history of off-the-field issues
- Re-signing Melvin Gordon and using a second-round draft pick on Javonte Williams in the same year
