If there's one thing Denver Broncos fans do not want at positions where there are question marks from last season, or chances to upgrade in the talent department, it's the status quo.
The Broncos emphasized continuity in 2025, and that paid off for them in a big way. But would they really do that again in 2026? Will general manager George Paton and head coach Sean Payton truly decide to run it back with certain players who the team felt needed to be upgraded over just one offseason ago?
That's precisely what Paton suggested at the NFL Scouting Combine during his media session. Paton's comments about two of the team's more prominent free agents, in particular, have officially raised the alarms for many in the fan base who have been hoping to see a major upgrade at the position.
George Paton makes it clear the Broncos want Alex Singleton, Justin Strnad back in 2026
“[ILB] Alex [Singleton] and [ILB] Justin [Strnad], we’d love to have those guys back. We’d love to have them back, regardless of what’s in the draft. We see those guys as Broncos. If we let those guys leave, what are we doing? Those are good guys, but that doesn’t mean we can get them. Everyone is watching tape. You look at both. When you are getting your plan for free agency, you look at the draft and where it’s strong there. ‘OK, maybe it’s strong at receiver…’ It is a balance, and you do develop your plan, so it is a good question. With some players, you just want to get back regardless of the strength.”
- Broncos GM George Paton (via team PR)
No general manager is going to simply give away his strategy to the media at the NFL Scouting Combine, but this quote from George Paton certainly reads like he's more than open to the idea of running it back with Singleton and Strnad at linebacker, while potentially investing in a draft pick for depth behind them.
Paton did acknowledge that this is a solid class of incoming linebackers, but his commentary about rookies playing early in Denver was also another reason to believe he might be inclined to simply re-sign his own guys.
"I think that this is a pretty good linebacker class. It is a tough position for a rookie to come in and play right away, especially with some of the things that we do. I do like the depth of this class, I do. We’ll see. It’s early in the process. We interviewed those guys last night. It was a sharp group, definitely.”
- George Paton
Saying that it's a "tough position" for a rookie to come and play for the Broncos right away doesn't mean the team would never ask someone to do it, but it's yet another indicator from Paton that the preference internally might be to simply bring back the guys who already know what they're doing out there.
And if both Strnad and Singleton return, does that mean Dre Greenlaw is gone? Strnad has made it clear that he wants to be a starter going forward. If both he and Singleton re-sign, wouldn't the assumption be that both would start? And then you would have to have a discussion about cutting Dre Greenlaw, which would be yet another thing that would drive the fan base nuts.
Forsaking the possible talent upgrades in free agency in the name of continuity would, at a bare minimum, represent a significant risk by the Broncos. When there are players available like Devin Lloyd, Nakobe Dean, and Kaden Elliss (among others), you have to be certain that continuity is the very thing that's going to keep your elite defense elite.
Many Broncos fans have feared the possibility of the team just running it back at linebacker. That position group has lacked long-term stability for quite some time. It's also left something to be desired in terms of overall impact. Running it back with the current group and sticking with the status quo would feel like a punt on third down, given what's available this offseason.