3. George Paton, General Manager
When Russell Wilson got benched, that could have spelled the end of the tenure for General Manager George Paton in Denver. And frankly, there isn't a lot of good that has come from Paton's tenure. The hire back in 2021 was praised league-wide, but his non-NFL Draft decisions have really put a skid mark on his tenure.
Firing Vic Fangio was a mistake, it seems. Hiring Nathaniel Hackett was a colossal mistake. Trading for Russell Wilson was a bad idea, and his free agencies were just downright awful including swinging and missing on guys like Randy Gregory, DJ Jones, and K'Waun Williams. Paton just does not have a ton going for him outside of drafting Patrick Surtain II and... maybe Nik Bonitto?
George Paton is a strong evaluator of talent, and might be better suited to have some sort of head college scouting role. And considering that head coach Sean Payton has the final roster authority, I don't think Paton is going to want to continue serving in his current GM role if he does not have final say.
Could there be a scenario where Paton's job is tweaked a bit and he remains in Denver? Sure, but I also think it's a very real possibility that Paton gets fired at year's end.