George Paton’s work on Broncos’ foundation made Russell Wilson possible

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — The Broncos’ expected return to relevance was neither grand plan nor random chance. It sits at their junction — just as luck can be where preparation meets opportunity.

In looking back at the Broncos’ eventful offseason, general manager George Paton saw this. Obviously, he couldn’t control whether Russell Wilson would become available. Had the Seattle Seahawks and Wilson patched up their differences, the Broncos would have been left sifting through the discard pile. And in that instance, fans trekking to Broncos training camp could have been witness to a Baker Mayfield-vs.-Drew Lock competition.

Fortunately, Denver avoided a seventh year in its quarterbacking quagmire. Wilson wanted to leave Seattle. He had options; for at least 75 percent of the league, he represented an upgrade.

Effectively, Wilson chose his destination.

And he chose Denver because of what Paton did last year.

“It wouldn’t have done any good to bring Russell in here if we didn’t have a foundation in place,” Paton said Tuesday, adding a moment later, “We needed a foundation to go get a quarterback like him. First of all, he wouldn’t have come, right?”

Paton’s moves brought the possibility of Wilson into the fold. In that regard, it looked much like what John Elway and Brian Xanders’ did in 2011 to make signing Peyton Manning plausible.

The 2011 upgrades included draft picks Von Miller and Orlando Franklin, free-agent running back Willis McGahee and a then-unknown undrafted rookie, Chris Harris Jr. When combined with the haul from a successful 2010 draft — wide receivers Demaryius Thomas and Eric Decker and guard Zane Beadles — and holdovers like left tackle Ryan Clady.

That foundation was good enough for a .500 regular season, even with Tim Tebow completing fewer than 50 percent of his passes.

Last year’s foundation finished 7-10. But it was 7-6 when Teddy Bridgewater suffered a season-ending concussion.

It doesn’t take a leap of logic to see how Wilson would have viewed the Broncos of today much as Manning did a decade ago — a quarterback away from contention.

You couldn’t plan for either quarterback to be available, of course. But when the opportunity arrived, the preparation made the audacious moves possible.

Last year, Paton nailed his first two draft picks, Pat Surtain II and Javonte Williams. He nailed down Justin Simmons on a long-term deal. Tuesday, those were the three players Paton identified as the foundation.

“If we didn’t have those type of players here, it would have done us no good to go get a quarterback, invest in a quarterback like Russell Wilson,” Paton said. “That’s what I mean about a foundation.”

The Broncos’ top brass couldn’t go to sleep at night last fall knowing for certain that Wilson would be available. Nor could they bank on Aaron Rodgers ultimately making an unexpected return to Green Bay after a season of cryptic press conferences and breadcrumb hints that sent media and fans scurrying like mice on NoDoz.

But they could be prepared, just in case.

And because of that work, they have a chance to do things that seemed unfathomable last year.

“He didn’t come here to lose,” Paton said. “He came here to win, and he believed in our team, and we believed in our team, and we believe in it even more now that we’ve added a bunch of good players in the offseason, had a good draft, we feel, and now it’s coming together.”

And just like 10 years ago, the Broncos have hope again.

They couldn’t plan it. But they were prepared when opportunity knocked. And in an environment with as many uncontrolled variables as pro football, that’s the best you can do.

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