George Paton Dishes on 'Pressure' to Get Russell Wilson Signed by Deadline

The Denver Broncos had a deadline to get Russell Wilson extended.

In the wake of Russell Wilson's five-year, $245 million contract extension, the mood around Denver Broncos HQ is one of elation. For the next seven years, the Broncos have a franchise quarterback. 

Wilson is the winningest starting quarterback in NFL history through his first 10 seasons. His 113 total wins is the most for a QB in his first 10 years... ever. 

Obviously, the Broncos wanted to get a deal done to keep Wilson around for the foreseeable. But the negotiation process is part of any accord between two sides. Whether it's a guy stepping on a car lot looking to buy, and the salesman sizing him up as a potential mark, or a quarterback and an NFL team, who wins the negotiation can usually be deduced by the bottom line. 

Wilson's agent, Mark Rodgers, crossed swords with Broncos' V.P. of football administration (aka cap czar) Rich Hurtado. Who came out on top in negotiations? 

Wilson ultimately agreed to a relatively team-friendly deal. He may be the highest-paid player in team history, but contrary to offseason reports, he wasn't looking for $50 million per year and a fully guaranteed contract. 

But that doesn't mean there weren't some tense moments during the negotiations. GM George Paton illustrated that in Thursday's press conference alongside Wilson to celebrate the extension. 

“We did feel pressure. It came down to the wire last night," Paton said. "We had a deadline. I felt we would figure it out, but you never know. We’ve never done a deal together. M ark is tough (laughs). Rich is tough. You’re like, ‘How is this going to work?’ [Wilson] and I kept talking, but we’re like—we could have done the deal together. We had two tough negotiators."

Paton was tired after all the energy expended during the final roster cut-downs of Monday and the tumult of Tuesday. But he would be interrupted from his football slumber. 

"I went home last night," Paton continued. "It was like 11:30 [p.m. MDT] and I hadn’t heard anything. I fell asleep because a couple nights ago, the waiver wire was out, and we were up all night. I fell asleep, then the phone rang. I don’t know what time—maybe 11:45 [p.m. MDT]. It was a FaceTime. It was ‘Russ’ (QB Russell Wilson) and Ciara. I couldn’t figure out the phone, so I lost them. I was like, ‘Are they going to ask for more money? What are they doing (laughs)?’ They called again and I answered, and it was one of the best phone calls I’ve ever received. Ciara, Russ and even Mark was on the call. It was pretty cool stuff and I’ll remember that. That’s the best I’ve felt after a deal.”

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Wilson was relieved to get the deal done so he could focus on the business of preparing to win a lot of football games for the Broncos. 

“It was exciting," Wilson said. "First of all, going back to George's story—he wakes up, and he’s like, ‘Huh? What’s up?’ I’m like, ‘George, we have a deal.’ He’s like, ‘Yeahhhh,’ as he’s slowly waking up out of it. I’m glad I woke you up out of your dreams. We believed that we were going to be able to get something done with great passion, great belief, and great togetherness in trying to make this a winning football team for a long time. There’s no way we couldn’t... There are so many people to thank, but I’m just grateful for this process. I’m grateful for everybody involved. I’m most grateful for my teammates because this is really about us and trying to do this thing together. I can’t wait to have a lot of fun next week, and we’ll get ready to roll.” 

At the end of the day, despite the rumor mill, there didn't seem to be anything ugly bubbling under the surface between Wilson and the Broncos during negotiations. And now, Paton can sleep easier — so can fans — knowing that the most important position on the field is solved for the better part of the next decade. 

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