The Denver Broncos are a bit of a mess right now, but that mess is far from Sean Payton's fault. Who is at fault for this disaster? Through two games in the 2024 NFL Season, the biggest Broncos' issue is being exposed: the lack of overall talent on the roster. It's just not a great roster by any means. Sure, the Broncos definitely have some good players on both sides of the ball, but it's clear that they are missing some of the game-changing players that take an NFL roster to another level.
Many have hammered Sean Payton through two games and have said that he's not the coach he once was and has lost his touch on offense, but to me, the truth is a lot closer to this mess being the fault of GM George Paton, who has made two disastrous moves that have set the team back for years.
The first disaster move was sending a ton of draft picks and multiple players for Russell Wilson. The notable parts of that trade included two first and two second-round picks, along with tight end Noah Fant.
The Seahawks have been able to re-stock their roster with Broncos' draft picks. The two first and two second round picks were in the 2022 and 2023 NFL Drafts. And the other disastrous decision Paton made after that was hiring Nathaniel Hackett to lead the team. Hackett didn't last one season. He was fired late in the 2022 season.
This essentially forced Paton and the Broncos to trade for Sean Payton, who was still under contract with the New Orleans Saints at the time of the deal. This trade ended up being for another first and second-round pick. When you consider that the Broncos have had six first and second-round picks in total going to Russell Wilson and Sean Payton, it's easy to see why the team's roster lacks that explosiveness.
And two Paton draft misses have also set the team back a hair. RB Javonte Williams and TE Greg Dulcich have turned into pretty awful selections, so those two have set their respective positions back as well. For the first time since the 2021 NFL Draft, the Denver Broncos will have their own first and second-round picks. The 2025 NFL Draft could be where the Broncos really start to make strides.
Furthermore, the team is currently slated to have nearly $73 million in cap space, according to Over The Cap. The Broncos could be fully stocked next offseason, and it would be the first time in the Sean Payton era that he'd have both high draft picks and a load of cap space. When you consider just how inept the offense as been and how iffy the defense can play at times, remember that Sean Payton has inherited a tough situation.
The situation became tough because of the GM mistakes from George Paton. Let's not hammer Sean Payton for things that are not his fault.