If you want to understand how the game is played with NFL general managers, start with the knowledge that nothing they say in public isn’t carefully planned out beforehand.
Take, for example, the comments made by Denver Broncos general manager George Paton on Thursday in a pre-draft press conference alongside head coach Sean Payton.
In a bizarre turn, Paton went out of his way to single out the 2027 NFL draft for what’s projected as an elite class of quarterbacks. It’s a class of quarterbacks that could rival the record-setting 6 picks in the 1983 and 2024 NFL drafts.
In 1983, the Broncos traded for future Hall of Fame and 2-time Super Bowl-winning quarterback John Elway after the Baltimore Colts selected him No. 1 overall.
In 2024, the Broncos drafted current starting quarterback Bo Nix with the No. 12 overall pick.
“I think everyone feels like next year is going to be a strong draft and that’s based on the quarterbacks,” Paton said. “We feel like it’s going to be a strong quarterback draft.”
Why would a general manager with 1 of the NFL’s best quarterbacks — who is still on his rookie contract — say something like that?
Reading the Tea Leaves on Paton’s Comments
There are a few things we can infer from Paton’s comments. One of them isn’t just that he’s some draftnik who is really into the 2027 QB class.
The most likely reason Paton said what he said is he knows there’s a massive fight brewing when it comes to a possible contract extension for Nix.
Barring a Super Bowl appearance, the Broncos seem like they would be hesitant to pay up and make Nix play out his 4-year, $18.6 million rookie contract.
One big reason they’re hesitant is the Brinks Truck full of cash they’re going to have to pay Nix, who could land somewhere in the range of the $60 million per year the Dallas Cowboys pay quarterback Dak Prescott, who is currently the NFL’s highest-paid player.
The big difference? Nix has been wildly more successful than Prescott the last 2 seasons, including consecutive playoff appearances after almost a decade-long postseason drought.
Bo Nix’s Surgically-Repaired Ankle in Question
Nix broke his ankle on 1 of the final plays of a game-winning drive in overtime against the Buffalo Bills in the AFC Divisional Round, but somehow remained in the game. His absence was the main factor for the Broncos in a 10-7 loss to the New England Patriots in the AFC Championship Game 1 week later.
“What was found was a condition that was predisposed — they always find a little more when they go in,” Payton said on January 26. “It wasn’t a matter of if, it was a matter of when. When you look at the play and you’re trying to evaluate it — the operating surgeon said that this was going to happen sooner than later. Now, you go about the rehab, proper orthotics, all those things.”
Nix was quick to call Payton a liar without actually having to say the word.
“Nothing predisposed, nothing that was there originally … I don’t think (Payton) should share how many surgeries I’ve had in the past, to be honest with you … he doesn’t even really know that,” said Nix, who had surgery 3 days after the injury and was given a 4-6 week time frame to resume football activities. “But it’s going to be good to get back, get back to work. … Nothing really concerns me, nothing scares me moving forward.”
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