Denver Broncos’ new GM, George Paton, arrived in Mile High City with the clear goal of rebuilding the team by recruiting and developing players. These basic principles, and many others, served him well enough to get the job of succeeding John Elway.
“Player selection and development will be our foundation,” said Paton during his opening press conference last week. “It will be the lifeblood of this football team.”
Paton’s clarity is music to the ears of players like security guard Justin Simmons, who could form the core talent that GM plans to develop. A player who is much less sure of his position is a fan favorite, Phillip Lindsay.
Lindsay enters her fourth NLF season after a record-breaking career for an unescaled player, recording consecutive 1,000-yard campaigns to open her career. His fairy tale story was hit hard by the injury bug in 2020, and this resulted in the talented running back being presented in fewer games (11) and accumulating much less yards (502).
What happens next for the Broncos? Don’t miss any news and analysis! Take a second and sign up for our free newsletter and receive the latest Broncos news in your inbox daily!
Lindsay becomes a restricted free agent in this off-season and Paton will have to weigh in if he is going to bid on former Colorado Buffalo. The application of the second round of the RFA contest for the 26-year-old should cost Broncos $ 3.259 million in 2021, which, on the surface, is more than accessible in terms of the front office. Compared to Melvin Gordon’s $ 8.96 million salary limit, the amount offered in the second round may become a little more prohibitive.
The Broncos’ offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur’s desired plan to develop a twin backfield attack did not work with Lindsay getting hurt and that could inform Paton’s approach. The GM for the first time would be remiss to ignore Lindsay’s intangible attributes, including his intensity and leadership, not to mention his popularity within the Broncos Country, as noted in the ‘pros’ (vs. cons) column.
“We all believe that to design and develop talent you bring high-quality players into your organization, you develop them and, hopefully, get them a second contract, and that’s how you build your best culture,” said Paton.
If culture is paramount, and production is king, further evidence of Lindsay’s value comes through his 2,550 running yards and 18 touchdowns to date. Rewarding Lindsay previously unpaid with a low risk RFA proposal would set a positive tone that hard work and perseverance can indeed pay off within the Broncos’ culture and organization.
It would also safeguard what advantage the Broncos would have to oppose any foreign offer. You would think that any self-respecting GM would agree that finding a way to keep their best players is a good policy.
Follow Keith on Twitter @KeithC_NFL and @MileHighHuddle.