ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — Sean Payton is a night owl. Late to bed. Not so early to rise.
Having worked closely alongside the Broncos’ head coach for the past 15 months, general manager George Paton, an early riser, was surprised to receive an early morning text from Payton on Saturday.
They were the last two to leave Broncos headquarters Friday night after the second and third rounds and media obligations were finished. Payton and Paton were talking about Troy Franklin, the Oregon receiver who caught dozens of passes from quarterback Bo Nix, whom the Broncos had drafted Thursday in the first round.
“We left about midnight,’’ Paton said. “Sean sleeps in a bit typically. I knew when I got a text at 6 a.m. that said, ‘Let’s get this player,’ that we had to figure this one out.’’
Paton did find a trading partner with his old friend John Schneider, general manager of the Seattle Seahawks. The Broncos gave up a decent amount – their fourth-round pick at No. 121 and a fifth- and sixth-round pick in exchange for moving up 19 spots to Seattle’s No. 102 pick in the fourth round to take Franklin and a mid-seventh-round selection.
VIDEO ABOVE: Meet Denver Broncos quarterback Bo Nix
That move highlighted Day 3 of the Broncos’ draft that also included Notre Dame running back Audric Estime and Utah receiver Devaughn Vele.
From Nix in the first round to guard-center Nick Gargiulo with the penultimate selection in the seventh round – with Jonas Elliss, Franklin, Kris Abram-Draine, Estime and Vele in between – the Broncos’ draft class of 2024 was loaded with friendly personalities who were no wallflowers.
Clearly, character was among the numerous traits the Broncos’ talent evaluators consider before making them their own.
“I think it is just as important as any other factor,’’ Paton said. “Obviously you have to be talented and be good football players. Football character and then personal character is huge. We stay true to it.
“You are always tempted to take a shot or take a risk (on a player who may not have good character), but every day we talk about it when we are going through these players. What are they like in the weight room? What are their practice habits? What are they like off the field? All of these guys are really good guys, and it is a big emphasis.”
Age, however, was not necessarily a deterrent in the Broncos’ evaluations. Nix was the oldest of the six first-round quarterbacks at 24 years old. Vele, who took a two-year mission to Samoa and got an extra year of college playing eligibility because of the 2020 COVID season, is already 26.
“If they were younger, they would have gone higher,’’ Paton said. “You just look at the value. He is ready-made, Vele in particular. He was just too talented to pass up. We had a clear vision for him fitting in with what we are doing.
“Twenty-six is still young, relatively speaking. He plays a mature game. He has all the traits. He is a prototype. He is big and fast. For a big guy, he can get in and out of his breaks. We just thought he was too talented to pass up.”
Said Payton: “We are near the middle or towards the end of the COVID-19 class, which backed things up. We have always looked at players that have gone on missions. We discussed it a lot.”
Then again, the Broncos also drafted some pups. Elliss and Franklin just recently turned 21, and Estime doesn’t turn 21 until September.
After the draft, the Broncos signed several undrafted college free agents to add to their rookie class. Sources told 9NEWS three of the undrafted rookies are Wyoming offensive tackle Frank Crum, Nebraska safety Omar Brown and SMU defensive tackle Jordan Miller.
“I think we had a good three days,’’ Paton said. “I think we improved our football team.”
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