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Best 3 moves George Paton has made with Denver Broncos

By Andrew Wade

INDIANAPOLIS, IN - MAR 01: George Paton, general manager of the Denver Broncos speaks to reporters during the NFL Draft Combine at the Indiana Convention Center on March 1, 2022 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images)
INDIANAPOLIS, IN - MAR 01: George Paton, general manager of the Denver Broncos speaks to reporters during the NFL Draft Combine at the Indiana Convention Center on March 1, 2022 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images) /
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DENVER, COLORADO – OCTOBER 23: Bradley Chubb #55 of the Denver Broncos stretches during warmups before the game against the New York Jets at Empower Field At Mile High on October 23, 2022 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Justin Edmonds/Getty Images) /

George Paton Trading Bradley Chubb

I know this wasn’t the most popular move in the locker room, but trading Bradley Chubb was the right thing to do, and for George Paton to get a first-round pick out of the deal was a game changer considering Chubb is on an expiring contract and has had health issues throughout his career.

George Paton intelligently looked at what the market would be for Bradley Chubb, and he game-planned appropriately. The Denver Broncos drafted Baron Browning and moved him to edge a year later, they used their second-round selection on pass rush specialist Nik Bonitto, and they signed stud pass rusher Randy Gregory to a major deal in the offseason. Each of those moves has question marks attached to them be it health or ineffectiveness, but it cannot be denied that Paton was planning ahead for Chubb’s departure.

In addition to commanding a high contract (Chubb eventually signed a 5-year/$119 million extension with the Dolphins), Chubb’s performance hasn’t exactly commanded that kind of money going into his sixth season.

When on the field, he has shown flashes, but he’s not often on the field. Much like Ronald Darby, the best skill is availability, and Chubb isn’t always available. The only full season Chubb played was his rookie year. Since then, he has played 4, 14, and 7 games.

And when he is, he isn’t putting up the number you expect from an elite pass rusher. He has tallied 28.5 total sacks in five seasons with 20 of those coming in his rookie season or in this season. For comparison, after five seasons Denver Broncos legend Von Miller had 60 sacks. Comparing on a per-game basis to make this a more apt comparison, Miller averaged .83 sacks per game while Chubb has averaged .54 sacks per game.

Bradley Chubb is a very good player, but he wasn’t going to move the needle for the Denver Broncos to be a Super Bowl Champion, and for George Paton to be able to recoup a first-round pick in the process was a huge deal for the Denver Broncos.

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