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The Russell Wilson era has seemingly ended for the Denver Broncos following a December 27 report by NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport that Wilson would likely be benched.
People on X, formerly Twitter, pounced on general manager George Paton, calling his 2022 blockbuster trade for Wilson a failure.
“Can we please direct some of this hate at George Paton? It’s very obvious Russ needed an elite roster for the Broncos to be a contender. Outside of [cornerback Patrick Surtain II], which was a no-brainer pick, the Broncos have no gamebreaking talent. It’s a bottom 10 roster in the NFL saved by coaching,” one observer posted on X.
Former Broncos offensive tackle Tyler Polumbus, who played in Denver in 2008, 2009 and part of 2015, weighed in on Paton’s job security.
“George Paton gave Russ a quarter of a billion dollar contract that hasn’t even kicked in yet. Hard to imagine he doesn’t go down with Russ,” Polumbus posted.
Denver radio host Zach Bye of 104.3 The Fan argued there is no separating Paton from Wilson’s time in Denver.
“On the heels of the Russ news I’m now fully expecting Sean Payton to also move on from GM George Paton. I’ve talked about this for a long time…u can’t separate George from the trade & deal. They are inextricably tied together IMO. Fair? Those are the big boy breaks of the game,” Bye posted to X on December 27.
Will Petersen of Denver Sports said he wanted Paton dismissed ASAP.
“Has George Paton been dismissed yet? Again, you can’t keep him after this. Simply too awkward as he made one of the worst trades and more importantly gave out one of the worst contracts in NFL history,” Petersen posted on X.
Broncos Reportedly Threatened to Bench Russell Wilson Earlier in the Season
The benching has Paton on the hot seat, with another new report reflecting poorly on the embattled general manager.
Jordan Schultz of Bleacher Report posted on X that Wilson’s benching is “solely financially related” and has been “in the works for weeks.”
“The Broncos approached Wilson two days after their October 29 upset win over the Kansas City Chiefs and told him he would be made inactive for the rest of the season if he did not adjust his contract and defer the injury guarantee trigger date that he has for 2025. Wilson has $37 million in injury guarantees for 2025 that will become guaranteed no matter what on the fifth day of the 2024 league year in March,” Schultz posted to X on December 27.
Schultz wrote that the threat “shocked” Wilson, leading to a “dispute with the organization over how to proceed.”
“When the threat was made by the Broncos, the team, Wilson’s camp, the NFLPA, and another unknown party were involved in negotiations that ended with no change in Wilson’s contract,” Schultz wrote.
The Broncos decided to stick with Wilson because Denver was in the middle of a five-game winning streak, Schultz wrote. Payton and other top-level organizational members went ahead with their plan, with the playoffs unlikely after a 1-3 stretch.
George Paton Made a Costly Error in Trading for Russell Wilson
The “Let Russ Cook” era in the Mile High City was instead a burned entrée. Paton got fleeced in the trade that had sent several draft picks to the Seattle Seahawks.
While the draft capital and players sent to Seattle seemed excessive, the extension alone was a fireable offense for Paton.
Wilson signed a $245 million extension with the Broncos in September 2022 before ever taking a snap with the team. According to Over the Cap, his monster contract is set to count $35.4 million against the 2024 salary cap.
Cutting bait with the star passer would be felt significantly for the next two seasons. Pushing to re-sign Wilson could set the Broncos back years.
Paton deserves credit for having the guts to pull off such a trade. But the move will instead serve as a cautionary tale about trading for aging star quarterbacks.
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