The Denver Broncos need to hire Thomas Dimitroff as their GM
Jan 7, 2021, 5:52 AM
News came down Monday afternoon that John Elway was stepping away as the general manager of the Denver Broncos, but will remain with the team as the president of football operations. The Broncos have now begun their search for their next general manager.
The Broncos have requested interviews with a number of candidates, but there’s one name that stands out and needs to be hired as the next general manager of the Broncos. That person should be Thomas Dimitroff.
Dimitroff has already been a general manager in this league and had success doing it. Dimitroff was with Atlanta from 2008-20. He took over an organization that was in need of a quarterback and he hit with Matt Ryan. Ryan would lead the Falcons to the playoffs in his rookie season and eventually to a Super Bowl. Dimitroff has also been named Executive of the Year twice while with Atlanta.
Dimitroff has drafted well on the offensive side of the ball and has really focused on that side making sure his team could score points. In a division with the Chiefs, Denver will definitely need to score more points. There have been six top-10 scoring offenses under Dimitroff while with Atlanta. Denver hasn’t had one since 2014. Elway also tried building his team like the Chiefs.
None of the other candidates that the Broncos have requested interviews with come close to that experience and in fact none have been a general manager yet.
The Broncos current brass has been famous for hiring inexperienced staff members as of late. In back-to-back hires, they hired first-time head coaches in Vance Joseph and Vic Fangio. Neither has worked out so far. It wouldn’t make sense for the Broncos to hire a first-time general manager either.
Denver needs an adult in the room to help turn this ship around from hitting the iceberg. The Broncos seriously cannot have a head coach still trying to learn the job entering his third season and have a first-time general manager. Sure, the 49ers did it in San Francisco, but that was Kyle Shanahan and John Lynch. Everyone knew that was going to work from the start.
There’s also a connection between Dimitroff and the Denver organization.
Dimitroff crossed paths back in the early 2000s with vice president of player personnel Matt Russell of the Broncos. Russell will help Elway and Broncos president Joe Ellis during the process of hiring the next general manager before he retires to spend more time with his family.
According to Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk, the next general manager of the Broncos could quickly move up into Elway’s current role with the team. Florio also added that this general manager could end up with a similar contract like Elway’s in the range of $6 million per year over five to six years.
This would give some hope that he would be safe even when the next owner comes in. If this is the case, Dimitroff would be the best candidate to fit this role over the guys of Champ Kelly, Adam Peters and even Dave Ziegler.
None of the current Broncos candidates could be the general manager and then become that president of football operations that quickly, except for Dimitroff.
Mike Klis of 9News has said that he has heard Dimitroff’s name come up in talks, but the Broncos have yet to schedule an interview with him.
James Palmer of The NFL Network was on “The Drive” earlier this week and said that he would keep an eye on Dimitroff and that Dimitroff had told him that if he can get back to Colorado, he would love it. Palmer also added that he fits with what the Broncos are looking for. Fangio is looking for a grinder and Elway is looking for a face of the franchise. Dimitroff checks both of those boxes.
Dimitroff currently owns a home in Boulder and according a to a source familiar with Dimitroff, he’s big into biking. There’s no better place to bike than in Colorado.
Mike Garafolo of The NFL Network also mentioned Dimitroff’s name as a sleeper. Garafolo added that experience could be something that this organization will value with Elway stepping away.
It seems like the perfect fit. The candidate likes what the Broncos have to offer. And the Broncos need what Thomas Dimitroff brings to the table.
