The Denver Broncos have not yet made a decision on who will be the next general manager to lead this team in the next era. A week away from John Elway, giving up GM duties to take a “high” role in the front office, the Broncos held five interviews for the opportunity to work.
One candidate has already retired after interviewing him – Dave Ziegler of New England – which leaves the internal choice of Brian Stark and the three external competitors fighting for the job – starting with George Paton of Minnesota, Terry Fontenot of New Orleans and Champ Kelly in Chicago. None of the candidates interviewed have GM experience, although Paton sat closest to the “big seat” to quote 9 NEWS“Mike Klis from the inside.
Klis joined The drive on 104.3 Hay Monday night to provide an update on the situation in which the Broncos are looking for Elway’s successor. Among the topics of choice discussed in Klis’ conversation with hosts Darren McKee and Tyler Polumbus was the vision each GM candidate had of Drew Lock during the interview process with Elway CEO Joe Ellis, head coach Vic Fangio and Head of Communications Patrick Smyth.
It seems that each candidate has adopted a different direction on the direction that Broncos will take to the defender in case of landing the position. Klis compensated himself by saying that he is not “aware of all this” and that he is not sure exactly what was “discussed”, while in the next rhythm, he gave up this nugget.
“I don’t really know all this,” Klis told McKee and Polumbus. “I know it was discussed. There were general opinions, from “If you have the chance to go get a top defender, you have to try”, to “There is no one in the free agency or [via] trade that will be better than Drew Lock, [so] you have to get him out of the project ”, to“ Give him more time, you have invested so much time. It’s better with him and let’s get a quality veteran reserve in case he slips. And I’m not sure who was with whom in these opinions. “
(Listen to the video at 35:00)
What’s next for the Broncos? Don’t miss any news and analysis! Take a second and subscribe to our free newsletter and receive daily news about Broncos!
In summary, there were three views, but two of them would keep Lock as a starter, only under different conditions. A single candidate would do his best to get a “top” QB in the NFL project. Another candidate would remain with Lock as The Guy in 2021, mainly due to the investment the team has already made in it and the lack of viable options in the free agent market and the commercial market, while the latter type would remain with Lock, but will fly against the regress by signing a competent reserve veteran.
We have no way of knowing which candidate professed which perspective, but the solution is that of the three options, only one would look in the project for an immediate update / replacement to Lock. Fans will no doubt try to theorize and speculate on which candidate said what, but for now, only a handful of people know the answers – the candidates themselves and the Broncos employment committee. There is a chance that Klis will know which candidate said what, but he is not about to pour the beans on the waves.
Elway, as president of football operations, will want to be “consulted” on all the “big” decisions that the next GM will make. What qualifies as “big”? Klis offered an extra perspective in his enlightening conversation with The drive.
“A defensive decision would be ‘big’ if you give up Drew Lock and bring in Matthew Stafford,” Klis told McKee and Polumbus. “And John will not make the final decision in this regard. He’ll just say, “Look, I understand you want Stafford. I personally think that Drew Lock, if you give him a little more time, could benefit the Bronchos. That’s why I like Drew Lock. He is two years old [in] but he even had a year of development with the time he missed as a rookie and the time he missed in the second year due to the absence of OTAs and the pre-season. So he could support that argument. Otherwise, set it aside. I don’t think he’s going to be involved in Justin Simmons. I don’t think he’s going to be involved in Von Miller. ”
Another common theme among these GM candidates, according to Klis, was the priority for Justin Simmons to re-sign the Pro Bowl safety. And while Broncos Country may not want to hear, none of the candidates seemed willing to bring Von Miller back for the final year of the contract at a current cost of $ 17.5 million, though the first impetus would be trying to negotiate a restructuring – it might look like it anyway.
“All these GMs, when they interviewed, almost all tried to say, ‘Try to get Justin Simmons – Justin Simmons must be a priority to bring him back.’ Finding out how to bring Justin Simmons back, “Klis said The drive. “And Von, the feeling was, ‘Try bringing him back to a guy – see if we can make a new deal.’ You can’t bring it back to $ 18 million. But I think it was pretty much how all the GMs thought about those two players. ”
These are the important decisions of Broncos’ new GM, who will be fixed on the barrel when he is hired; Lock, Simmons and Miller. For now, Paton seems to be the favorite to get the job, but as Klis said on Monday, he is very “pretentious” when it comes to finding the right match for his first chance to be a GM.
Paton and Kelly could start immediately if an agreement is reached, while the Broncos would have to wait on Fontenot until the Saints are either jumped out of the playoffs or after the Super Bowl, depending on who came first. . Klis offered the possibility that the Broncos would see Kelly as the “second in command” ideally, not as the real hired GM, who opens a new box of worms.
But, remember, the Broncos isn’t just taking on Elway’s former job as GM – he’s also looking to replace Matt Russell and hire a new player staff director. That would require two new jobs in the main office. If Paton proves to be too expensive or pretentious, and the Saints continue to make it to the playoffs, Klis could predict a “second wave” of GM interviews in Dove Valley.
“If I don’t get Paton and Fontenot is in the play-offs and I can’t get him for a while and they want Champ maybe as the second on command, but maybe he’s not the first guy, there I think he could “Open it, make a backup,” Klis told McKee and Polumbus.
If a second wave unfolds, watch former GM Texas Rick Rick and former GM Falcons Thomas Dimitroff. Both have GM experience and Smith has a working relationship with the Broncos in his NFL resume.
Follow Chad on Twitter @ChadNJensen and @MileHighHuddle.