Evidence piling up against Denver Broncos GM George Paton

5. Already noticing some whiffs in the 2022 NFL Draft

Let’s preface this one by also saying that it’s way too early to judge the team’s most recent NFL Draft class. This is not to say that Nik Bonitto is a bust or will turn out to be a bad pick, but we have to talk about a few things here with the 2022 NFL Draft class.

Although you didn’t have a pick until the last selection of round two, you went out and grabbed a player at the EDGE position when you had already reloaded there in free agency and moved Baron Browning from off-ball linebacker to edge.

Instead of addressing the team’s longstanding need for offensive line help by taking a player like Washington State’s Abraham Lucas, a no-brainer fit with his combination of athleticism and time on task at right tackle, you went after a guy who opened the year as the fifth or sixth edge on your depth chart.

Abraham Lucas, meanwhile, has started all year for the Seattle Seahawks. That one hurts, for sure.

Beyond that, the Broncos look like they have some hits from this draft class in players like Damarri Mathis and Greg Dulcich, who could end up being season-opening starters for the team in 2023.

One other massive whiff so far appears to be the selection of return specialist Montrell Washington, who had a monstrous training camp and preseason for the Broncos, looking like an absolute stud, only to completely disappear here in the regular season. Worse, Washington has been a liability that teams deliberately kick the ball to in order to put the Broncos in unfavorable positions field position-wise.

Again, the jury is out on the 2022 NFL Draft class but taking Bonitto over Abraham Lucas or any right tackle that could possibly contribute for you early on looks like another huge error by Paton and company.