Broncos' Biggest Draft Steals & Busts of the George Paton Era

The Denver Broncos are poised to add another draft class to the history books. The 2026 NFL draft kicks off on Thursday night, and although the Broncos don't have a first-round pick, they have seven total selections this year.

This will be George Paton's sixth draft since being hired by John Elway in 2021 to succeed him as the new general manager. Over his tenure at the top of the Broncos' front office, Paton has drafted in partnership with three different head coaches: Vic Fangio, Nathaniel Hackett, and now Sean Payton.

Paton and Payton have something special going on with their partnership. Together, they have pulled the Broncos out of the NFL doldrums by making smart draft picks, savvy free-agent signings, and smart coaching hires.

But as the Broncos' GM, Paton runs the draft and all the scouts. Payton is a decsion-maker who could purportedly step in and veto a decision, but he and Paton have been like-minded collaborators thus far.

With all that said, the Broncos need another impact draft class. They were one Bo Nix injury away from the Super Bowl, and just a few roster additions via the draft could be the difference in getting over the top next January.

Let's examine Paton's biggest draft steals and busts as Broncos GM and figure out what went right and wrong.

Biggest Bust: Greg Dulcich | TE | Round 3 (2022)

Paton doesn't have any high-round busts, and that's one of the reasons the Broncos are thriving. The closest thing was Dulcich, Paton's third-round pick in 2022.

However, it must be said that of Paton's nine draft picks that year, Dulcich was the one most influenced by the new head coach, Hackett. Injuries kept Dulcich from playing as much as the Broncos hoped in 2022, but he still contributed 411 yards and two touchdowns.

By the next offseason, Hackett was gone, and Payton was the new head coach. Payton gave it the old college try with Russell Wilson as his quarterback, but Dulcich was a non-factor because of a hamstring injury that landed him on injured reserve.

By 2024, Dulcich was healthy, but Wilson was gone, and Bo Nix was the new quarterback. However, Payton kept Dulcich as a healthy scratch for eight weeks, primarily because of his lack of blocking value, before the Broncos waived him midseason.

The Dulcich era in Denver was over. For their third-round investment, all they got back was 10 starts over two-and-a-half seasons.

Biggest Bust Runner Up: Drew Sanders | LB | Round 3 (2023)

I'm reluctant to list Sanders as a bust because he's still with the team, but after three seasons, he's appeared in just 21 games with four starts because of the injury bug. 17 of those games came in his rookie season, which means that he's only appeared in four games over the past two years.

Sanders has had some bad injury luck, and along the way, the Broncos have fiddled with his position, moving him from inside linebacker to outside linebacker in 2024. He was moved back to inside linebacker in 2025, then he suffered a foot injury that cost him the entire season.

The Broncos recently made the decision to move Sanders back to outside linebacker, and it just so happens to be his contract year. If he survives training camp without getting hurt, he'll make the 53-man roster and get the chance to salvage his Broncos tenure and perhaps save himself from being viewed as a third-round bust.

Biggest Bust Consolation Prize: Baron Browning | LB | Round 3 (2021)

Browning was part of Paton's maiden draft class as GM. He was originally drafted to play inside linebacker, but was moved to outside after his rookie year.

Like Dulcich and Sanders before him, injuries curtailed his career momentum, but by year four, he was beginning to flash as a pass rusher and earned a starting job. However, a few games into the 2024 season, Browning was traded to the Arizona Cardinals for a sixth-round pick.

So, all of Paton's biggest busts have two things in common: one, they were third-round picks, and two, the injury bug derailed their careers. Who knows how it may have panned out for these guys if they had managed to stay healthy?

Biggest Draft Steal: Jonathon Cooper | OLB | Round 7 (2021)

Paton has made several franchise-changing draft picks, but none of them qualify as a steal. Cornerback Patrick Surtain II, rush linebacker Nik Bonitto, and quarterback Bo Nix were all highly-touted players who went early in the draft.

However, Cooper almost tumbled out of the draft in 2021 because of a heart condition. The Broncos took a chance on him, and soon after arriving in Denver, he underwent a procedure to help correct his heart issue.

From there, it didn't take Cooper long to endear himself to the Broncos and every coaching regime he's played for. As an entrenched starter since 2023, he's now playing on a second contract and has totaled 27 sacks over the past three seasons.

Cooper is one of the biggest draft steals in the NFL since 2021. He's under contract for a few more years, too.

Biggest Draft Steal Runner Up: Quinn Meinerz | OG | Round 3 (2021)

Paton had some major hits in his first draft in Denver, including Surtain, running back Javonte Williams, Meinerz, and Cooper. Meinerz found his way into the starting lineup about halfway through his rookie year.

Since then, Meinerz has been the Broncos' starting right guard. He was snubbed in the Pro Bowl and All-Pro voting in 2023, but the NFL began to rectify that in 2024.

Despite being passed over for the Pro Bowl, in the ultimate irony, Meinerz earned first-team All-Pro honors in 2024. This past season, he earned Pro Bowl and All-Pro honors, establishing himself as arguably the best right guard in football.

Third-round picks are supposed to become starters at some point, but Meinerz has become elite. His draft pedigree is the only thing that keeps him from leap-frogging Cooper as Paton's biggest draft steal. A seventh-rounder making good is more noteworthy than a third-rounder.

Biggest Draft Steal Consolation Prize: Luke Wattenberg | C | Round 5 (2022)

Wattenberg started out his Broncos career buried behind an entrenched starter at center in Lloyd Cushenberry III. After the 2023 season, though, the Broncos allowed Cushenberry to hit the bricks because they believed Wattenberg was ready to start.

They were right, as Wattenberg took control of the starting center job, beating out Alex Forsyth for the job in 2024. Wattenberg has been more than solid at the pivot since becoming the starter, but he's missed seven games over the past two seasons.

Despite this, the Broncos rewarded Wattenberg with a multi-year extension during the bye week last fall, locking him in for the foreseeable future. One of the reasons he was extended was the team's belief that he has only just scratched the surface.

If Wattenberg can stay on the field, he could grow to become a center worthy of end-of-year accolades, like Meinerz. Still, considering that he was a fifth-round pick, it's safe to say that Paton hit on a draft steal in Wattenberg.

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