5 biggest myths debunked by the Broncos hiring Sean Payton

Myth no. 4: Sean Payton isn’t going to want to work with George Paton

Alright, this was another thing I have heard a ton throughout this process. The thought regarding Sean Payton is that he wouldn’t want to work with an established general manager, which the Broncos obviously have in George Paton.

Paton may be on the hot seat going into 2023, but at the same time, the message from Greg Penner has been that Paton is someone he’s going to be relying heavily on. If Paton’s job is secure, it would seem that a guy like Sean Payton — who presumably wanted more roster control in this go-round as a head coach — would avoid a team like the Broncos, right?

Wrong.

People thought Payton would rather go to a team like the Cardinals who had moved on from both head coach and general manager this offseason, but that wasn’t the case. The Cardinals hired a GM of their own and that clearly wasn’t a sticking point for Payton with the Broncos.

As a matter of fact, we know George Paton is all about collaboration — perhaps these two can get along well. People act like Payton didn’t work with a GM in New Orleans where Mickey Loomis has been for the last two-plus decades.

It’s possible that Payton will want to bring someone like Ryan Pace along with him to work in the front office, but it’s also possible that he will simply hit it off with George Paton — one of the most respected executives in the league — and the two will have a good working relationship.

At this point in time, though, it’s clear that having the GM seat was not a sticking point for Payton, at least in the short term.