Examining GM George Paton's Job Security With Broncos

As the Denver Broncos' ongoing search to find the next head coach intensifies, reading the tea leaves is becoming a full-time job. Only last season, the Broncos were in exactly the same boat, feverishly exploring all avenues that eventually unearthed Nathaniel Hackett.

With the benefit of hindsight, the appointment of the untested Hackett was a significant reach, to say the least. All of this has meant that the Broncos' new owners have decided to pull the reins in rather tightly on GM George Paton this time.

In particular, Broncos CEO Greg Penner has grabbed the bull by the horns regarding hiring and firing. While Paton will be involved in the process of identifying the next head coach, it's Penner who's the driving force in selling the job to elite candidates like Sean Payton and Jim Harbaugh.

Finding the best possible fit at head coach appears to be taking Penner and company down a road where they could offer upwards of $20 million per season. In the case of Payton, the Broncos would also have to be more than willing to part with their first-round draft pick to free him from his contractual obligations with the New Orleans Saints.

It's a game of high stakes and one which the Broncos have to get right. Should the team fail, it will probably cost Denver the $245 million it sunk into quarterback Russell Wilson. You can understand why Penner is keen to take more active control over a franchise that was purchased by the Walton/Penner ownership group for $4.65 billion last summer.

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Payton is rumored to have been impressed by the Broncos' ownership stability. That's likely what Penner had hoped to drive home when he sat down with his principal targets, and it's a gravitas that Paton undoubtedly doesn't have at his disposal.

All of this suggests that Paton has lost a degree of control over the Broncos. All too frequently, particularly deep within multi-billion-dollar corporations, being stripped of the ability to hire and fire is often a harbinger of being shown the exit door.

Paton is bound to be feeling the heat as it is, especially after his move to trade for Wilson backfired. Paton hasn't been around for all six of the Broncos' playoff-less seasons, but he fell on his sword for the failed 2022 campaign.

"I take full responsibility for where we are as a football team," Paton said in late December when Hackett was fired. "I brought in the head coach, and I brought in most of the players. Those are my decisions, and there's no one to blame but me."

Should Denver's front office opt to surrender its first-round pick to obtain Payton from New Orleans, it will make Paton's job even more complicated. Still, Penner is savvy enough to realize that he won't want to meddle in Paton's NFL draft preparations. But after the draft...

Throw in the extra personnel control that any high-profile head coach will most likely demand, and Paton could be put in an increasingly tough spot.

In the ultimate 'What have you done for me lately' type league, Paton is learning how pressurized dealing with corporate America's big hitters can be.

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