ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — George Paton knows his work is never truly complete, even though today he would have every reason to lean back in his chair and smile with the satisfaction that accompanies a job well done, thanks to having a seventh major contract extension complete with the re-signing of Nik Bonitto.
After all, the task of roster building doesn’t provide many off-days.
Last year, during the one burst of downtime that the league calendar provides between minicamp and training camp, the Broncos still worked out a prospect who’d just completed a season in the United Football League. The signing of that player, Dondrea Tillman, barely stirred a ripple around the NFL at the time.
But three months later, Tillman burst free of a Tampa Bay blocker and brought down Baker Mayfield for an eight-yard sack that effectively ended a Buccaneers drive as they were trying to mount a comeback. Two plays later, the Bucs punted, setting up the offense for a 14-play drive that finished off Tampa Bay and gave the Broncos their first win of the season.
Funny how that works. Something small ends up making a massive impact.
Paton’s work will continue as the season progresses, much of it on a parallel track to the season that unfolds. His college scouts will scurry across the country. Paton himself will get to some college games for first-person looks at prospects.
His pro scouts will evaluate players who could provide immediate help for potential roster holes; he’ll filter and manage that work, too. Thursday’s injury to defensive lineman Malcolm Roach provided a reminder of just how necessary that aspect of Paton’s roster-building task could be.
Still, Paton deserves credit for the depth already on hand in the defensive-line room, as Jordan Jackson and Enyi Uwazurike had such stellar camps that they made themselves indispensable despite the draft-weekend arrival of third-round pick Sai’Vion Jones at their position group.
The woes and frustrations of 2022 — the Nathaniel Hackett hire, the trade for Russell Wilson, the failure to launch for free-agent pickup Randy Gregory — seem far away now. And from that weed-infested garden of a year blossomed the rose that is Bonitto, so it’s not as if the year was a total loss.
The broad sample size of Paton’s full body of work reveals that Paton has become as elite at his job as some of his top draft picks have become at theirs.
But for all the contracts that have been extended in the last 14 months — Quinn Meinerz, Pat Surtain II, Jonathon Cooper, Garett Bolles, Courtland Sutton, Zach Allen and now Bonitto — there’s a big one looming.
Because Paton is in Year Five of a six-year contract.
So, how about making Paton the next man up with a big deal?
All he’s done is turn one of the NFL’s shakiest rosters into one of its sturdiest and deepest. At nearly all position groups, the Broncos have a backup who can step in and produce. Promising developmental players abound.
Three of his draft picks were first-team All-Pros last year. Another, Bonitto, was a second-team choice.
What’s more, he’s helped burnish the Broncos’ reputation around the league. They’re considered a team with which agents and other teams can work to fashion reasonable contracts and trades that work for both sides.
The Broncos aren’t a team that tries to WIN the deal; they’ve become one known for making a FAIR deal. This helps keep doors open; when you earn that sort of reputation, you’ll find plenty of other teams with which you can work when you need to make a trade. And you’ll be able to get more contracts done … and have a better chance at procuring free agents in the future. The value of that has no measure in dollars.
Paton is a massive reason why.
GEORGE PATON ALWAYS SUCCEEDED AT THE LITTLE THINGS, BUT HE’S GETTING THE BIG ONES RIGHT, TOO
Such as taking Bonitto with the selection acquired in the trade of Von Miller to the Los Angeles Rams midway through the 2021 season. In a draft devoid of high capital because of the Wilson trade, he had to nail the first pick.
And while third-rounder Greg Dulcich became a miss because of hamstring and foot injuries, Bonitto was a slam dunk, as Paton basically traded Miller for the Super Bowl 50 MVP’s eventual successor.
Bonitto was a player in whom the Broncos took a specific interest three years ago during the pre-draft process. They made him one of the 30 players selected for a pre-draft visit at their facility.
“I still remember on my [Top] 30 visit here, there were questions about me if I loved the game. He had those same types of questions, but at the end of the day, he believed in me,” Bonitto recalled Thursday. “He knew he had a vision for me, and he trusted it.
“It’s led to me getting a contract here. That’s just for anybody. All the young guys on the team, just continuing to work, continuing to get better. Not to say 100 percent you’ll get rewarded, but they’re paying attention to these things. They’re paying attention to everything.”
And no one’s paying closer attention to the details than the general manager himself.
George Paton has taken care of business.
Now it’s time for the Broncos to take care of him.
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