George Paton: “Lots of reasons to be optimistic” on the Broncos

In the five years since their Super Bowl 50 victory, the Broncos have generated a 9-7 record followed by four consecutive losing seasons. New GM George Paton nevertheless sees hope lurking in the roster and the situation of the team.

“I just think they’ve written well the last couple of years,” Paton told reporters on Tuesday when asked how close the team is to being a contender. “They have good young players to build around. Now how long it takes I don’t know. We have to do our part, but I think some things are in place. It’s a young football team. . . . They have a healthy salary position thanks to John [Elway], Matt [Russell], Joe [Ellis] and rich [Hurtado].

“Usually in this league you don’t have a lot of time to change things. You don’t have six years, it must be faster. I just think they have a few things in place. I’m not going to give you a timeline, but they have young pieces in place, a healthy cap, so there’s a lot of reason to be optimistic.

There will be even more reason to be optimistic when Paton swaps “they” for “us” as he is now an integral part of things in Denver. It might seem out of place, but it’s a subtle indication that he may not be ready to fully embrace the work of those who came before him.

If so, it is for good reason. The team has struggled in recent seasons. Four consecutive years, with more losses than victories.

Paton was also asked what he would like to accomplish in Denver that he hadn’t for 14 years in Minnesota.

“I would like to win a Super Bowl here,” Paton said.

It won’t be easy. To get there, they / we / anything have to improve in a number of ways – especially with leaders, loaders, and raiders in the same division.