ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — For General Manager George Paton, like Tom Petty, the waiting may be the hardest part.
After dealing the ninth- and 40th-overall picks in this year’s draft as part of Denver’s trade for Russell Wilson, the Broncos are slated to make their first selection with the final pick of the second round, and so Paton admitted Friday that over the course of the long wait, he and his staff will get “jumpy.”
For months, more than a dozen front-office evaluators have worked toward the three-day draft that begins Thursday, and even though they won’t have the top picks they previously expected, the team’s philosophy will not change, as Paton and Assistant General Manager Darren Mougey said Friday.
“The process hasn’t changed a bit,” Paton said. “We’re just focused a little later. We’re not focused on the ninth [pick] — because [usually] you’re always focused on that first pick. You want to hit on that first pick. But now we’re just focused really on the second round and third….