Broncos free agency: Tracking every move in George Paton’s first year

The 2021 offseason marks the first year since 2011 that John Elway will not be calling the shots in the Denver Broncos front office. New general manager George Paton left his role as the top assistant to Rick Spielman with the Minnesota Vikings after years of getting calls from other NFL teams to work with the “sleeping giant” in Denver.

Although the Broncos were a disappointing 5-11 in 2020, the roster had plenty of pieces when Paton was hired as general manager to be excited about. Just one week into the 2021 offseason and free agency signing period, fans all over Broncos Country are getting an idea of what Paton is all about.

When he was hired, Paton promised an aggressive but not reckless approach.

So far, so good.

No one was really quite sure what to expect from Paton — this is his first time ever running the show after spending time in just about every other front office role throughout his career — but he has been making some impressive moves.

Before he stepped down as the team’s general manager, John Elway talked about wanting to get fresh eyes on the roster he’s built five years following the team’s victory in Super Bowl 50.

Based on the initial wave of moves, it’s clear that Paton was not lying or pumping us all with fluff when he dubbed the roster a sleeping giant. He clearly liked what he saw but knew where work needed to be done.

Let’s take a look through all of Paton’s moves in his first year on the job as a general manager in the NFL with the Denver Broncos.