Kiszla: Pat Bowlen's departure leaves a hole Broncos can't fill

By Mark Kiszla The Denver Post July 24, 2014

Yes, there is crying in football. The love that makes the Broncos a family is the same love that made the first day without Pat Bowlen hurt so badly tears were worn like a badge of honor.

Mr. B has left the building.

The cruel reality of Alzheimer's disease ushered the 70-year-old Bowlen out the door before anybody at Dove Valley headquarters was ready to say goodbye.

"There is finality to it," Broncos president Joe Ellis told me Wednesday. As Ellis talked, his eyes unabashedly filled with emotion and glistened with fondness for a man who did more than own the Broncos for three decades. Bowlen quietly demanded excellence all 365 days of every year.

As the harsh realization of his words caught in his throat, Ellis struggled to add: "Mr. Bowlen won't be in the building today. And I don't think he will be walking in the door tomorrow. It's brutal."

During his NFL career, John Elway was sacked more than 500 times. Three losses in the Super Bowl stung. But here is what caused the old quarterback to exhale slowly, wipe his nose and bite a tongue to hold back tears:

"This place will never be the same," said Elway, paying respect to Mr. B on the summer afternoon when the office of the owner was empty and the franchise felt a hole in its heart.

Before the Broncos could open training camp and get down to the task of building a Super Bowl dream, there was a much tougher chore. They buried the end of an era.

"What's beautiful about the Broncos is they have a blueprint. It was created by Pat Bowlen long before I got here, and will be here long after I'm gone. Not every NFL team gets that lucky. The Pittsburgh Steelers have a philosophy thanks to the Rooney family. The New York Giants might not always win, but they have a vision for success created by the Mara family. And the Broncos are Pat Bowlen," said coach John Fox, hired in 2011 after Bowlen admitted his mistake of Josh McDaniels rather than allowing pride get in the way of doing what was best for the franchise.

The curse of Alzheimer's disease is the body stays alive while the personality inside slowly fades away. Against any foe or odds, Bowlen won't give up without a tough fight.

But he's a walking ghost of the man affectionately called Mr. B, and that's why the family business weeps.

"Everybody who knows Pat Bowlen well, loves Pat Bowlen. And I love Pat Bowlen," Ellis said.

"This closes down the chapter of what Pat Bowlen did so well. Life has been sucked out of him. It's unfair."

The decision for Bowlen to step away from the family business in order to do right by the Broncos was as brave and selfless as it was difficult.

There was no exit conversation, ripe with made-for-the-movies melodrama. Instead, what Ellis revealed with a peak behind the curtain at the toughest call of Bowlen's career was more true to the messy realities of growing old.

It was a series of talks during the course of several months among Bowlen, his family and team executives that slowly pulled together the loose strings of what needed to be done.

"There were some pretty emotional conversations about his frustrations with where his health was going," Ellis said. "Those conversations were gut-wrenching and sad. He had those same conversations with his children and his siblings and his wife. Those are memories a family never forgets. They're not the best memories. But they're part of what makes a family."

Rampaging through the upcoming NFL regular season, returning to the Super Bowl and winning it one more time for Mr. B sounds like a plot perfect for a Hollywood script. But, truth be known, it would not do justice to the blueprint of the Bowlen family business.

"We want to do it every season," Elway said. The boss has left the building, but you can bet the mantra of Mr. B will ring long and loud from in the locker room, on the practice field and throughout a stadium awash in orange on NFL Sundays.

"If you ain't winning," Bowlen declared again and again during the course of three decades, "the people ain't coming."

Losing is not an option.

Broncos excited to put 2013 behind them and jump into new season

By Troy E. Renck The Denver Post July 24, 2014

The first day without owner Pat Bowlen also marked the final day to remember last season. On a difficult day draped in sadness, the Broncos looked forward to competing for a championship, the prize that drove Bowlen for three decades.

"We're excited about getting started," said general manager John Elway, whose emotions spilled over when talking about Bowlen's impact on the franchise. "Plus, we can put last year behind us. As tremendous as last year was, obviously there's always a bitter taste in your mouth when it ends the way it ended. When we get out on the field, that officially ends the 2013 season. We can now get going on the 2014 season."

The Broncos reached the Super Bowl, and the Seahawks undressed them. The rout shaped Denver's offseason. Rather than remain static, Elway overhauled the defense. While the Broncos are Peyton Manning's team as long as he's under center, he needs help. Elway experienced this as a player, losing three Super Bowls before the Broncos broke through with a more balanced roster against the Green Bay Packers in Super Bowl XXXII.

"We can't rely on 18 (Manning) to win it, because he can't win it by himself. So I think what we've done, especially with (defensive end) DeMarcus Ware and the leadership ability there, and (cornerback)Aqib (Talib), as well as (safety) T.J. (Ward) and the leadership — they've brought their identity to the defense," Elway said. "And they do not want to have to rely on the offense to bail us out."

The Broncos could have as many as seven new defensive starters from their Super Bowl collapse. Only cornerback Chris Harris will start on the physically unable to perform list after January knee surgery, with rusher Von Miller and defensive lineman Kevin Vickerson cleared to practice.

Ward promised the Broncos will send a message defensively in the preseason. Coach John Fox said the process is already underway.

"I think we can create an attitude starting (Thursday)," Fox said.

Ware's addition looms large in the transformation. It seems he has been a Bronco for "10 years," Elway said. Ware pushes players and provides guidance. The former Dallas star, who is attempting to put the final touches on his Hall of Fame résumé, doesn't shy away from expectations.

"We are trying to be (No.) 1 and (No.) 1. The best offense in the league and the best defense in the league," Ware said. "I think it's going to be night and day from last year."

If the offense regresses slightly, no one will complain. The Broncos are seeking a little more balance as Montee Ball enters as the starting running back and Emmanuel Sanders joins a stacked receiving corps.

"There is a singular focus," receiver Wes Welker said. "I couldn't be more excited. It's just a matter of us putting it all together to reach the ultimate goal. With the new veterans, that's what makes good teams great. It's not about talking about it, it's about being about it."

Joe Ellis has background to take over Pat Bowlen's Broncos duties

By Mike Klis The Denver Post July 24, 2014

Had Pat Bowlen not handpicked his successor and the Broncos instead used an independent search committee, Joe Ellis might well have landed the job on résumé alone.

Ellis got his start in the NFL by selling ads in the Broncos' GameDay program. He later worked as an intern in the NFL office, working his way up until he became cohorts with a promising administrator named Roger Goodell.

After returning to the Broncos, Ellis was put in charge of marketing, finance and, ultimately, the whole Broncos' organizational shebang.

"Anymore, to operate all the stuff for an NFL organization, you've got to have a feel for all of it," Broncos coach John Fox said. "Old, hard-core football people, they can't do that. You've got to deal with the owners. That's a different breed of cat, having been around a few. Dealing with marketing people. Dealing with football people. Joe's got great overall, expansive knowledge and experience to do his role. I think people skills are really important, and he does a tremendous job with that."

Leadership streams through Ellis' bloodlines. His mom is the sister of George H.W. Bush, who in the four years from 1989-93 was the leader of the free world. Bush's oldest son, and Ellis' cousin, George W. Bush, was president of the United States for eight years, from 2001-09.

All Ellis has to do is lead an NFL team.

And so far, he has shown promise. During the past three years in which he has had final-say authority of the club, the Broncos won three AFC West titles and three home playoff games, and averaged better than 12 victories, counting playoffs, per season.

As Bowlen cedes control of the Broncos so he can continue to battle the insidious disease that is Alzheimer's, it would appear Ellis is well qualified to take charge. "I got asked to do it," Ellis said Wednesday. "I had the best mentor anyone could have. I just feel fortunate to be part of the organization. I wish Pat were here to do it. That would be better." Ellis may be kin of the Bushes, but he's more a protégé of Bowlen's.

"His style comes from Pat, which is why Joe is so terrific to work for," said John Elway, the Broncos' general manager and head of football operations.

Elway answers to Ellis. He has since Ellis and Bowlen hired Elway to run the Broncos' football department in January 2011.

The announcement of Elway's hiring drew one of the largest news conferences in Denver sports history. Ellis stood by at the same news conference while a release circulated to the media announcing his promotion to president.

On that same day, Bowlen essentially stepped back from overseeing the Broncos' day-to-day operations and transferred that control to Ellis.

"He never used the Bush card, and he never used the team president card, either," said Ray Baker, chairman of the Denver Metropolitan Football Stadium District. "You would not use the word ego with Joe. He likes to stay invisible. He is fiery and a competitor. We've had some tough negotiations, and at times they got contentious. But he has always been a man of integrity. He's a handshake guy. He is a man of character that you trust."

A 1980 graduate of Colorado College, a liberal arts school in Colorado Springs, Ellis joined the Broncos in 1983. He started in the marketing department, where he started at the best place any up-and-comer can hope for — the bottom. Meaning no disrespect to program ads.

After three years with the Broncos, Ellis went to Northwestern University to earn a master's degree in management. Document in hand, he began interning with the NFL office in New York in 1990, where he worked alongside Goodell, who is now arguably the most powerful commissioner in sports.

"Joe's deep experience ensures that the Broncos will continue to have strong leadership," Goodell said Tuesday in a statement to The Denver Post.

Before the Broncos' second Super Bowl title season of 1998, Bowlen hired Ellis to run his business department. Ellis has been Bowlen's right-hand man ever since.

Ellis was promoted to chief operating officer in 2008, then quietly became the team's president in 2011.

Well before Bowlen's health became debilitating, the owner put the Broncos in a trust. The Pat Bowlen Trust entrusted Ellis. "He asked me to run it," Ellis said. "And I will do that. This is not about me today, but he asked me to do it, and I stand shoulder to shoulder with everybody in the organization to follow through on what his goals and objectives were."

More than anything else, winning defines Bowlen's legacy as the Broncos' owner. He was the first NFL owner to reach 300 career victories by his 30th season.

Ellis was by Bowlen's side for much of that time.

"His style is a lot like Pat's, because he grew up under Pat," Elway said. "He's involved and knows about everything that's going on, but he also gives you the ability and resources and the parameters to be successful. And he allows you to do your work."

Involved, but not a meddler. Sounds like the Broncos' leader hasn't so much changed as stayed the same.

Meet Joe Ellis

A 1980 graduate of Colorado College, Ellis joined the Broncos in 1983. He started in the marketing department selling ads.

After three years, Ellis went to Northwestern University to earn a master's degree in management.

He began an internship with the NFL in New York in 1990, where he worked alongside current commissioner Roger Goodell.

Bowlen hired Ellis to run his business department before 1998, the second Super Bowl-winning season for Denver.

Ellis was promoted to chief operating officer in 2008.

In 2011, Ellis became the Broncos' team president.

Tuesday, Ellis became CEO of the Broncos, replacing Pat Bowlen.

Construction update at the Broncos' Dove Valley headquarters

By Mike Klis The Denver Post July 24, 2014

Construction update. The two-phase construction project at the Broncos' Dove Valley headquarters — renovation to their existing facility and new construction of an indoor practice facility — has come a long way.

"Pat would be proud of the existing building, which freshens the building up and makes it feel and look like a brand-new building," Ellis said. "It raises the first-class standard.

"Sometimes you can't see from the drawings just how good or bad it wound end up. In this case, it ended up better than expected."

But the project is not finished. Because of safety concerns, training camp practice begins Thursday with no fans allowed.

"That's disappointing, because the players and even the coaches like the atmosphere," Ellis said. "We'll try to complement that with the stadium practices we'll do." Pat Bowlen tribute by Broncos "to be tasteful," says new CEO Joe Ellis

By Mike Klis The Denver Post July 23, 2014

It won't be a patch on the Broncos' jerseys, but the team will pay tribute to owner Pat Bowlen in some way during the 2014 season.

Possibilities include inducting Bowlen into the Broncos' Ring of Fame to naming the new indoor practice facility after him.

"We don't want to disclose that until we go through it with the family," said Broncos president and CEO Joe Ellis. "It's going to be tasteful and it's going to be right."

Von Miller cleared for Broncos training camp; Chris Harris on PUP list

By Mike Klis The Denver Post July 23, 2014

His ACL repaired and last year’s cloud removed, Von Miller has been cleared for training camp.

Miller’s knee surgeon, Dr. James Andrews, cleared the Broncos’ pass-rushing linebacker to participate in the team’s training camp, which starts Thursday morning.

Miller will be a limited participant. Broncos general manager John Elway said Miller would not engage in contact until the week of the third preseason game Aug. 23 against Houston.

Broncos cornerback Chris Harris, however, will start camp on the physically unable to perform (PUP) list because of his ACL injury in his right knee.

“Mine hasn’t been six months yet,” Harris said.

Miller tore the ACL of his right knee during the Broncos’ 15th regular-season game at Houston on Dec. 22. Harris suffered his injury on Jan. 12 in the Broncos’ second- round AFC playoff win against San Diego, but didn’t have surgery until after the Feb. 2 Super Bowl.

Harris will visit Dr. Andrews on Monday. If he’s cleared, there’s a chance Harris could be activated from the PUP list next week.

Meanwhile, another veteran coming off a season-ending injury, defensive tackle Kevin Vickerson, has also been cleared for light camp work.

Vickerson suffered a dislocated hip in the Broncos’ 11th game last year at New England. Elway said Vickerson would spend the first week or so getting in shape as the 330-pound tackle has been unable to run because of the injury.

John Elway on Pat Bowlen: "It will never be the same here"

By Troy E. Renck The Denver Post July 23, 2014

Even without his presence, Pat Bowlen remained present Wednesday as the Broncos held their annual training camp media barbecue. Bowlen stepped down as owner Wednesday, focusing on his battle with Alzheimer's disease, leaving an unmistakable void.

General manager John Elway, who has known Bowlen for three decades, fought his emotions, pausing for several seconds as he discussed the team's transition without their successful leader.

"It's a sad, sad day. From the inside out, it will never be the same here," Elway said.

Bowlen ceded much of the daily operations to team president Joe Ellis over the last few seasons. However, Bowlen will no longer occupy his days at the team's Dove Valley headquarters. It was expected, but remains jarring nonetheless.

"He has given me so much. It's going to be hard to walk through those doors and not see him," Elway said.

Bowlen, 70, has placed his Broncos' ownership in the Pat Bowlen Trust. His desire is for one of his seven children "to earn the right to run the franchise someday," Ellis said. Bowlen ranks as one of the top owners in pro sports with Ellis, Elway and coach John Fox all stressing that Bowlen "absolutely" belongs in the Hall of Fame. Elway said his preference is for Bowlen's bust to be next to his in Canton, Ohio.

The Broncos chose to reveal Bowlen's condition now for multiple reasons: the owner's absence at Dove Valley would create fair speculation about his health, creating the possibility the news would leak, and the team felt it owed it to the fans and the community to be open about the situation since the Broncos are "a public trust," Ellis said

A former lawyer and real estate tycoon, Bowlen created a winning culture with the Broncos starting in his first season in 1984. He possessed the rare ability to preside over the team while empowering and trusting his football executives and players. Bowlen's first foray into football came in 1981 when he loaned money to the Montreal Alouettes owner, a friend of his. Bowlen never wanted to own a CFL team, and wisely passed an opportunity to run an USFL club.

He yearned for a chance in the NFL, and pounced when cash-strapped Edgar Kaiser agreed to a $78-million price for the team. The Broncos have experienced just five losing seasons over the past 30 years, selling out every game and winning two Super Bowls.

"We are going to do right by his family, the team and the community," said Ellis, struggling at times to find the right words to describe Bowlen's impact. "This is really hard. It doesn't change what we do. He loved running this team and was really good at it. ... We all wish Pat would walk through that door and do what he did so well. But he left us a blueprint that's easy to follow."

Players, executives, NFL fans react strongly to Pat Bowlen’s resignation

By Nicki Jhabvala The Denver Post July 23, 2014

After 30 years at the helm, Broncos owner Pat Bowlen is relinquishing control of the team’s day-to-day operations after acknowledging his battle with Alzheimer’s disease. The daily duties of running the team will fall to Joe Ellis, who will assume the title of CEO in addition to president, though the long-term vision of Bowlen is to have one of his seven children run the team when the time is right.

Bowlen’s tenure with the Broncos has left an indelible mark on not just the team, but the entire NFL, its players and executives and, of course, the fans, who have always been his priority as owner.

“As many in the Denver community and around the National Football League have speculated, my husband, Pat, has very bravely and quietly battled Alzheimer’s disease for the last few years,” his wife Annabel said in a statement. He has elected to keep his condition private because he has strongly believed, and often said, ‘It’s not about me.’

“Pat has always wanted the focus to be solely on the Denver Broncos and the great fans who have supported this team with such passion during his 30 years as owner. My family is deeply saddened that Pat’s health no longer allows him to oversee the Broncos, which has led to this public acknowledgment of such a personal health condition.

“Alzheimer’s has taken so much from Pat, but it will never take away his love for the Denver Broncos and his sincere appreciation for the fans.”

After purchasing the Broncos in 1984, when he was 40, Bowlen last year became the first NFL owner to notch 300 career wins by his 30th season. During his three decades of leadership, he helped the franchise to six AFC Championships, back-to- back Super Bowl victories, in 1997 and 1998, and a .604 winning percentage (second to only the 49ers) with only five losing seasons.

While the news of his resignation from daily operations is saddening to all, the change actually took place a few years ago, when Ellis was promoted to team president in 2011, The Post’s Mike Klis wrote. Broncos business will continue as usual, but the exit of Bowlen is, and will continue to be, felt throughout the league. DeMarcus Ware wants Broncos’ defense to be “1 and 1″ with offense

By Nicki Jhabvala The Denver Post July 23, 2014

Speaking to reporters at Dove Valley on Wednesday, the first day players had to report to training camp, Broncos general manager John Elway said he wanted this year’s team to find a defensive identity.

“I think that we’ve got to get to be where we’re a complete football team,” Elway said. “We can’t rely on (Peyton Manning) to win it because he can’t win it by himself. So I think what we’ve done defensively, especially with DeMarcus Ware and the leadership ability there, and Aqib (Talib), as well as T.J. (Ward) and the leadership that they’ve brought is the defense to have their identity. And they want to have their identity, take pride in what they do and not have to rely on that offense to bail us out.

But minutes later, DeMarcus Ware, who signed with the Broncos in March after spending nine seasons with the Cowboys, took it a bit further.

“I think this can be a night-and-day defense from last year,” he said

“At the end of the day, as you know from last year, defense wins championships. … We are trying to be a force to be reckoned with this year and you already talked about us being an offensive team, but at the end of the day, we are trying to be 1 and 1 — the best offense in the league and the best defense in the league.”

Ware spoke candidly about his relationship with linebacker Von Miller, and how being a mentor to Miller on the field “hits home.” While he wasn’t willing to put a number of the total sacks the two hoped to earn this season, like they did last month, Ware did say he’s aiming for consistency.

“You can’t really put a number on anything,” said Ware, who already ranks 18th all time with 117 career sacks. “I think it is always about how consistent you can be every week on getting pressure on the quarterback, if they have a quick passing team, if they are a quick drop-back team.”

Earlier Wednesday, coach John Fox said the team’s expectations for its revamped defense were high, and with reason after its 43-8 collapse in the Super Bowl.

“I’d like to see improvement,” Fox said of his defense. “I think a year ago we didn’t feel like as a coaching staff or as an organization or even our players that we played up to where we need to be to be a championship football team. So we’ve got new players and I say this every year, to conclude a season, this will not be the same football team.”

Mitch Ewald, rookie kicker, is signed by Denver Broncos

By Jeff Bailey The Denver Post July 23, 2014

The Broncos signed rookie kicker Mitch Ewald on Wednesday, the team announced.

Ewald played 48 games for Indiana University and finished his career as the program’s all-time leader in field goals (53), field-goal percentage (.803) and extra points (161).

Over his four season at Indiana he connected on 161-162 extra points 99.4 percent and finished second in Hoosiers history with 320 points scored.

Hochman: Broncos defense this season could be as good as 2012 squad

By Benjamin Hochman The Denver Post July 23, 2014

Wednesday marked the annual media barbecue and Broncos interview session, where we gluttons arrive with empty stomachs and notebooks, inhaling spoon-fed potato salad and clichés, eating up pulled pork and proclamations.

There are no wrong answers at the media barbecue. Everything said by those in orange-and-blue is expectation speculation, but darn it if it isn't fun to hear.

As such, general manager John Elway was asked about the defense, which he built like one of his Chevrolet Silverados, with a starting MSRP of multi-millionaire starters.

Since nothing has happened yet, Wednesday marked a perfect day to play the comparison game. So, Elway was asked if his revamped 2014 defense can be as good as his 2012 defense, which graded second-best in football.

"Yeah, there's no question," said the old gunslinger, who surely would've been wary of Ware back in his day. "I think it's a matter of everyone coming together and playing together as a team. Talent-wise, if we get Von (Miller) back off the injury, we need cornerback Chris Harris to come back, and then we've got some young guys that need to step up. I think DeMarcus Ware is healthy, Von needs to be healthy. Those two guys if they're healthy, there's two beasts coming off the edge that are tough to deal with. So you know, the best pass defense is a pass rush, so if we get that going, we've got a pretty good chance to be pretty good on defense."

Here's my own expectation speculation — Elway's onto something. Last season's defense was offensive, but there were porous holes. Yes, there will be injuries this season too. But this defense, on paper, is better than 2012.

And how rare is this — not that Denver has two elite pass rushers, but that both guys have chips on their shoulders the size of Trindon Holliday. Von Miller desperately wants to just be Von Miller again, coming off the injury and embarrassment of last season. And yes, Ware will wear a gold jacket someday, but first he must wear the burden that his old team thought he's worn down. So, yeah, beware. Last season, the Broncos' pass rush earned a 13.5 overall rating from Pro Football Focus, what seems like an arbitrary number until compared to the previous season, 2012, when the pass rush rated nearly twice as effective (24.2).

"I think this is going to be a night and day defense from last year," Ware said Wednesday. "You had guys that were hurt, and have the opportunity to not have any holes in your defense. You have good interior defensive linemen, you got good linebackers, two great, phenomenal pass rushers, but also guys that can come in and make plays. When you talk about defenses they always have good cornerback core. So they are really tough back there. They come up and are able to make plays and make tackles on the run. So I think the sky is the limit for us.

"As you know from last year, defense wins championships. ... We are trying to be a force to be reckoned with this year and you already talked about us being an offensive team but at the end of the day, we are trying to be No. 1 and No. 1 — the best offense in the league and the best defense in the league."

Shoot, if they can even be No. 2, like two years ago, this team should be playing football in February.

Broncos owner giving up control due to Alzheimer's

By Arnie Stapleton Associated Press July 23, 2014

ENGLEWOOD, Colo.— Even as dementia began to rob him of some of his fondest memories over the past few years, Denver Broncos owner Pat Bowlen reported to work every day to oversee multimillion-dollar upgrades to the team's training facilities and roster.

So his absence from Dove Valley headquarters on Wednesday as players reported for physicals on the eve of training camp was as jarring as the announcement that the 70-year-old Bowlen was giving up control of the team because of Alzheimer's disease.

"This place will never be the same," a choked-up general manager John Elway said. "... It's going to be very hard to not see him walk through the front doors every day."

Yet, Elway and team president Joe Ellis pledged to continue Bowlen's legacy and winning culture he fostered during his long stewardship of the franchise.

Ellis is adding the title of chief executive officer and will have final say on all matters.

"Mr. Bowlen has entrusted Joe to take his spot and he couldn't have appointed a better guy to step in for Pat," Elway said. "Joe's a guy that bleeds orange and blue."

Ownership of the franchise is held in a trust Bowlen set up more than a decade ago in hopes that one of his seven children will one day run the team, Ellis said Bowlen asked him to run that trust.

Elway, who brought Bowlen two Super Bowl rings during his Hall of Fame playing career, demurred when asked if he aspired to one day own the team.

"That family owns the Broncos. Pat Bowlen still owns the Broncos. We have total respect for that," Elway said. "They've hired me to run the football operations and I'm thrilled to do that. I work for Pat still, as well as the Bowlen family, and I'm going to continue to do that." Ellis said that with Bowlen no longer able to run the team, the community and fan base deserved to know what was going on, so the family agreed to make public the condition he's dealt with privately for several years.

"Alzheimer's has taken so much from Pat, but it will never take away his love for the Denver Broncos and his sincere appreciation for the fans," Bowlen's wife, Annabel, said in a statement.

After acknowledging in 2009 that he suffered short-term memory loss, Bowlen stepped back from day-to-day operations in 2011 when he promoted Ellis to president. For the first time this offseason, Ellis represented the Broncos at the annual owners meetings.

Under Bowlen's guidance, the Broncos won six AFC titles and two Super Bowls. At 307-203-1, Bowlen and New York Giants founder Tim Mara are the only three- decade owners in pro football history to win 60 percent of their games.

The Broncos' 186 home victories are the most in the NFL since he bought the team in 1984, when Elway was his quarterback, and the Broncos' five losing seasons during those 30 years are the fewest in the league over that span.

Bowlen was known as much for his humility as his competitive fire, doing his best to stay out of the spotlight even as he built a winning culture and a fan base that extends throughout the Rocky Mountain region.

He was instrumental in the league's explosive growth at its longtime chairman of the broadcast committee, Ellis said, and Elway said Bowlen deserves to be in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

"I'd love (his bust) to be right next to mine," Elway said.

When Elway brought Bowlen his first of consecutive championships in the late 1990s, the owner took the Lombardi Trophy in his hand at center stage after an epic win over heavily favored Green Bay and declared, "This one's for John."

"That was the highlight of my career," Elway said Wednesday.

Bowlen's affable style endeared him to employees and players alike.

When Bowlen received the Mizel Institute's 2013 Community Enrichment Award, Hall of Famer Shannon Sharpe said: "I would be hard-pressed to believe that there's an owner that cares more about his city, about his state, about his players than Mr. Bowlen does." Hall of Famer Gary Zimmerman said at that same event he realized Bowlen was a different type of owner when he signed up for a turkey in his first Thanksgiving in Denver, thinking it was all a joke.

"Then I come into the locker room and there's Pat sticking turkeys into our lockers," Zimmerman recounted.

During Peyton Manning's whirlwind free agency tour in 2012, Zimmerman said, he knew any other teams pursuing the four-time MVP were just wasting their time.

"I knew he'd be a Bronco before he did," Zimmerman said, "because once he visited here and met with Mr. Bowlen, I knew there was no way he could go anywhere else." Elway wants better balance from Broncos

By Arnie Stapleton Associated Press July 23, 2014

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — What bothered John Elway last year was the Broncos' imbalance, which showed up in a big way at the Super Bowl.

Denver's patchwork defense was an inadequate accompaniment to Peyton Manning's record-breaking offense, and the Broncos' high-flying passing game didn't get quite enough help on the ground.

So, the Broncos general manager spent the offseason beefing up his offensive line and adding an edge to his defense with free agent thumpers DeMarcus Ware, T.J. Ward and Aqib Talib along with first-round draft pick Bradley Roby.

"I think that we've got to get to be where we're a complete football team. We can't rely on 18 to win it because he can't win it by himself," Elway said of Manning, who threw for more yards and touchdowns than anyone in NFL history in 2013.

The Broncos had a very productive offseason, but training camp will begin to show if the moves will help them become the first team since the 1972 Miami Dolphins to win the Super Bowl a year after losing it.

The enthusiasm that usually accompanies the eve of training camp was tempered when the club announced Wednesday that team owner Pat Bowlen was giving up control of the franchise because of Alzheimer's disease.

"This is obviously a very sad day," Elway said. "But with everybody coming in, going through the physicals, we're excited about getting started."

Elway said he asks himself every summer, "Are we a better football team on paper ... than we were the year before?"

"And I think we are," he added.

He's eager to see how his free agents mesh and how several veterans return from injuries, including Von Miller, Chris Harris Jr., Rahim Moore and Ryan Clady.

Harris is the only Broncos player who will begin training camp on the PUP list, but he's headed to see surgeon Dr. James Andrews later this week to seek clearance. Returning for a new year also means "we can put last year behind us," Elway said in reference to the Broncos' 43-8 loss to Seattle in the Super Bowl when the Seahawks routed the highest-scoring team in NFL history.

"As tremendous as last year was, obviously there's always a bitter taste in your mouth when it ends the way it ended," Elway said. "When we get out on the field that officially ends the 2013 season. We can now get going on the 2014 season."

Elway said he's eager to see how Ware, Talib and Ward help forge a new identity so the defense doesn't "rely on that offense to bail us out."

"To win a world championship, you have to be a great football team and you have to be well-rounded," Elway said. "I think we've moved closer to that. Seattle was a tremendous football team. But this is a new year."

As for the offense, the Broncos want a better ground game, although they lack experience at running back. Second-year pro Montee Ball is the starter, but neither he nor any of his backups have ever started a game in the NFL.

"When you're as successful throwing the ball as we were last year, it's hard to argue with that," Elway said. "But, yeah you always want balance."

Facing that already formidable offense during training camp will help Denver's defense forge an identity, Ware said.

"Peyton Manning is always trying to trick us and doing those types of things. I think that is really going to help us," Ware said.

"But at the end of the day, as you know from last year, defense wins championships."

Notes: Miller has been cleared for 7-on-7 and individual drills, but it's doubtful he'll participate fully until mid-August.

DeMarcus Ware looks for pair of aces

By Jeff Legwold ESPN.com July 24, 2014

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. -- When Denver Broncos cornerback Chris Harris Jr. said this season was "Super Bowl or bust" earlier this month, that was one thing.

After all folks all over the region are thinking the same thing as they look over the Broncos' depth chart that still includes Peyton Manning at quarterback with a fairly young roster around him and one of the league's biggest hauls in free agency as well.

But now new arrival DeMarcus Ware has brought another goal into the conversation. Asked about the expectations of the team's defense, Ware said he hopes the Broncos go to uncharted ground when it comes to the franchise's history.

"We are trying to be a force to be reckoned with this year and you already talked about us being an offensive team, but at the end of the day, we are trying to be [No.] 1 and [No.] 1," Ware said. "The best offense in the league and the best defense in the league."

That's not just a lofty goal, but something the team has never done in five-plus decades worth of football business. The team has been to seven Super Bowls -- six of those on Pat Bowlen's watch -- and won two title games. But the Broncos have never finished a season with the No. 1 defense in yards allowed per game, which is what the NFL uses to statistically rank defenses each year.

The Broncos' best season in scoring defense -- when they allowed a franchise low 148 points in a 14-game season -- was in 1977. They finished ninth in yards allowed and were third in scoring defense, behind the Los Angeles Rams and Atlanta Falcons. Former Broncos head coach Mike Shanahan routinely has said a team will almost certainly be in the Super Bowl conversation with a top five offense to go with a top five defense.

Then, Shanahan has said, it comes down to playing your best when the lights are brightest. But even that will be no small chore for these Broncos. Overall the Broncos have only had four seasons when they even finished in the league's top five in yards gained per game on offense and yards allowed per game on defense -- again that's how the league ranks them each year.

In those four seasons -- 1996, 1997, 2004 and 2012 -- the Broncos won the Super Bowl only to close out the 1997 season. They were upset in the playoffs, at home, to close out both 1996 and 2012 and were thumped by Manning in the Wild Card game to close out 2004.

But Ware has again raised the issue many of the Broncos defensive players, most notably defensive tackle Terrance Knighton, have touched on throughout this offseason. That it's great Manning and the offense can pile up the touchdowns, but the Broncos want, and need, to be known for something on the other side of the ball.

If the team can't win the Super Bowl in a year when they scored more points in a season (606) than any team in history, then it's clear the Broncos need to bring a little something more than offensive pizzazz to the table.

But the difference in saying you want a top defense to go with the top offense and actually doing it is galactic in size. Especially in the salary cap era when many teams find themselves picking sides when they're doling out the contract cash. And that was something John Elway was trying to avoid this past offseason when he was waving Bowlen's checkbook around in free agency, securing players like Ware, cornerback Aqib Talib and safety T.J. Ward for the team's defense.

"I think that we've got to get to be where we're a complete football team," Elway said Wednesday. "We can't rely on [No.] 18 to win it because he can't win it by himself."

The 2013 season will always have its place in the team's lore as Manning threw for more touchdowns on his own (55) than the 31 other teams each scored. But the team never, whether it was because of injuries, mistakes or simply a lack of personnel, showed it had a Plan B for the days when the offense and Manning couldn't pull the team through -- like the day Super Bowl XLVIII was played for example.

The Broncos didn't run the ball well enough not to have to throw it all the time and they didn't play defense consistently well enough to close the deal. Although the Broncos defense may have actually had one of its better days against the Seahawks this past February until things got out of hand.

"To win a world championship, you have to be a great football team and you have to be well rounded," Elway said. "I think we've moved closer to that. Seattle was a tremendous football team. But this is a new year and we've got to go out and we've got to play the best football that we can play, and do what we do best. And how the coordinators put our guys in the best situations to be successful and we'll create our own identity. I think if we continue to do that with the people that we have, we're going to be able to compete for a world championship." "I think this is going to be a night and day defense from last year," Ware said. "You had guys that were hurt [last year], and have the opportunity to not have any holes in your defense … So I think the sky is the limit for us."

Bowlen news hits Broncos, Elway hard

By Jeff Legwold ESPN.com July 23, 2014

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. -- Often folks look at John Elway and talk about steely resolve. They talk about competitive fire. They talk about the unblinking ability to turn pressure into football diamonds.

And Wednesday, Elway showed his heart -- showed it with tears welling in his eyes as he tried to talk about Denver Broncos owner Pat Bowlen's, and Bowlen's family's, decision to step down from the day-to-day work of running the team. Bowlen turned over control of the team to a family trust with team president/CEO Joe Ellis making decisions that were previously Bowlen’s to make and Elway running the team's football operations.

Both Elway and Ellis were emotional as they attempted to talk Wednesday about Bowlen's impact on them, the community and the NFL. Both have spent the better part of three decades working for Bowlen, as well as spending time around the Broncos owner and his family away from the team complex.

For some, it was the kind of emotion they hadn’t seen from Elway, in particular, since he retired from the NFL after the 1998 season. The tears welled in Elway’s eyes as he spoke Wednesday, as he took several pauses and a heavy sigh or two to try to gather himself.

“I’ve worked for him for 30 years ... it’s, uh, going to be very hard not to see him walk through that door every day," Elway said. “He’s given me so much. As a player to be able to play for him, and as I’ve said when I retired, I said as a player all you want is an opportunity to be the best and to be able to compete for world championships and ... that’s what Pat has given us."

Elway also said Bowlen’s tenure as a day-to-day presence in the building “will never be matched, he will never be replaced." In the end, Elway called it a “sad, sad day."

Later, after matters turned to football as Elway walked to return inside the Broncos’ complex, he said “it really just hit me when I sat down to talk about him" that he had not expected to feel so much emotion when he sat down in front of the cameras and digital recorders. Pat Bowlen carefully planned for this day

By Jeff Legwold ESPN.com July 23, 2014

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. -- Every person who works inside the Denver Broncos' suburban complex knew this day was coming.

Pat Bowlen would ask the same questions in a meeting that he had just asked a few minutes before.

He stepped away from the tireless work he did on some of the NFL’s most powerful committees, including negotiating some of the groundbreaking television contracts that fuel teams' economic engines.

He started driving less, choosing to ride with the team’s now-retired security director, Dave Abrams, or Broncos general counsel Rick Slivka, or team president Joe Ellis as they routinely went to lunch at a restaurant that overlooks an executive airport.

He was in his office less, too. Former coach Mike Shanahan once said: "[Pat] was an owner you could always find, his office was right next to mine, so some coaches can’t find their owners, don’t talk to their owners. I saw Pat every day at work."

Then for the first time, Bowlen -- who once competed in the Ironman Triathlon -- didn’t go to the league meetings in March.

Through it all, those in and around the Broncos have always said Bowlen was "stepping away," choosing to let the people he has in place run the team in the way he hoped it would be operated.

On Tuesday, the Broncos formally announced Bowlen had surrendered control of the team as he battles Alzheimer’s disease. Ellis, who now will add the title and duties of chief executive officer to his duties as team president, will assume control of the team and represent the Broncos on all league matters.

A team statement said: "The Broncos are very saddened that Mr. Bowlen is no longer able to be part of the team’s daily operations due to his condition. We continue to offer our full support, compassion and respect to 'Mr. B,' who has faced Alzheimer’s disease with such dignity and strength."

Commissioner Roger Goodell said to the Denver Post: "This is a sad day for the NFL." Bowlen publicly had said he suffered some short-term memory loss in recent years, even as far back as 2009, when he fired Shanahan. With tears in his eyes, Bowlen said: "This is as tough as it gets." He then hired Josh McDaniels, but fired him with four games remaining in the 2010 season, with the franchise reeling from on-field losses and its own Spygate scandal.

Early in 2011, Bowlen performed what might have been one of his last great acts as the franchise’s most successful owner. He convinced John Elway to return as the team’s chief football decision-maker.

The Broncos, it seems, always have been at their best with Elway and Bowlen together in some way. Bowlen raised the team’s first Super Bowl trophy, saying: "This one’s for John." There is little doubt if Elway could raise one as an executive, he would say: "This one’s for Pat."

Player and owner. Friend and friend. Boss and employee.

There are those around the league who believe the $35 million expansion of the team’s complex, including an indoor practice facility, was in part a spruce-up, a value-added item, if the team were to be sold. But Bowlen’s wife, Annabel, said in a statement Tuesday: "Long-term, I fully support Pat’s hope of keeping the Denver Broncos in the Bowlen family."

Ellis has been with the team for most of Bowlen’s ownership tenure in Denver. Ellis was the team’s marketing director from 1983 to 1985 -- Bowlen purchased the Broncos in 1984 -- and Ellis returned to the team in 1998 and has been with the Broncos since. Ellis was promoted to COO in 2008 and named team president in 2011.

Together, it now will be Ellis and Elway who will try to maintain what Bowlen always wanted for the Broncos: to be in the Super Bowl hunt.

Bowlen would always enthusiastically and without hesitation pick the Broncos to win the title game in the coming year in what used to be annual postseason sit-downs. Bowlen liked star power. He liked success. He liked the Broncos to be at the front of the line.

The Broncos will hold their first training camp practice Thursday, the 31st training camp since Bowlen became the team’s owner. As Bowlen battles Alzheimer’s, those he put in place -- Ellis and Elway -- to run his team when he no longer could, might have assembled his best team, at least on paper, with a future Hall of Famer at quarterback in Peyton Manning. Whether this team closes the deal like Elway did in 1998 and 1999 remains to be seen. But you can see Bowlen knew what the future held, and knew what he wanted his franchise to be.

Chris Harris Jr. will start camp on PUP list

By Jeff Legwold ESPN.com July 23, 2014

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. -- Denver Broncos cornerback Chris Harris Jr. will start training camp on the physically unable to perform (PUP) list, meaning he will not practice when the team takes the field Thursday morning.

Harris, who had ACL surgery earlier this year, is the only Broncos player who will open camp on the PUP list. He is still on track to be ready for the regular-season opener but is scheduled to see Dr. James Andrews, who performed his surgery, at the end of the week.

If Andrews clears Harris, who projects as one of the team’s starting cornerbacks, for at least some participation and he passes the Broncos' physical, as expected, he will then be moved off PUP and on to the team's active roster. Harris said earlier this month he is "doing everything" in his rehab workouts and expected to get a clean bill of health from Andrews.

“Once Dr. Andrews says I’m good to go, I’m back on the field," Harris said.

Broncos linebacker Von Miller (ACL surgery) and defensive tackle Kevin Vickerson (hip), who both finished the 2013 season on injured reserve, were each cleared to practice on a limited basis. Initially, Miller will likely only participate in individual drills and 7-on-7 drills in practices and is not expected to see any full-contact work until the Broncos' third preseason game -- Aug. 23 against the Houston Texans.

Countdown to camp: Special teams

By Jeff Legwold ESPN.com July 23, 2014

Elway signed kicker Matt Prater to a four-year, $13 million deal in 2012, then signed punter Britton Colquitt to a three-year, $11.667 million deal in 2013. Both salary cap charges are over $3 million for the upcoming season -- $3.812 million for Prater, $3.25 million for Colquitt -- giving the Broncos one of the biggest 1-2 contracts in the kicking game anywhere in the league.

The two also roll into training camp unchallenged. Head coach John Fox has called them "probably the best two guys together in the league."

It's all part of the last installment of a position-by-position look at where things stand with the team as players officially report for training camp Wednesday.

Today: Specialists

How many coming to camp: Three.

How many will the Broncos keep: In the strictest of terms the Broncos kept three specialists last year -- Prater, Colquitt and long snapper Aaron Brewer. But given that returner Trindon Holliday played just four snaps on offense last season to go with his 151 plays on special teams, Holliday could certainly -- and should -- be considered the fourth specialist on the roster.

And a returner who doesn't do anything else is valuable if he is a threat to score on any given return -- which Holliday was. But he also quickly becomes a luxury difficult to make work if the same returner can't consistently put the team in good field position with quality decision-making. When the Broncos went into this offseason they made the choice that Holliday's inconsistencies catching the ball finally outweighed the six touchdowns he scored in just under two years with the team -- four regular-season TDs and two in the playoff loss to the Baltimore Ravens to close out the 2012 season.

The Broncos could be faced with a similar roster decision this time around. In a perfect world, with so many roster needs that come up during a season due to injuries or other reasons, the Broncos would like to use a multi-tasker in the return game.

But to use a position player who has a role on offense or defense means one of them has to show he's ready for the return game, and the Broncos have to show their willingness to use him there. Wide receiver Emmanuel Sanders is the most proven of the Broncos' position players in the return game, in addition to wide receiver Wes Welker. Sanders is going to have such a big role on offense there is little attraction to the injury risk that comes with also using him on kickoff and punt returns.

The same is true with Welker, who suffered two concussions last season.

But the Broncos could use Sanders on punt returns and use another player on the depth chart, like safety Omar Bolden or wide receiver Andre Caldwell, as a kickoff returner.

In terms of potential specialists in the return game, undrafted rookie Isaiah Burse will practice with the team's wide receivers -- he had a 99-catch season in '13 at Fresno State -- but his real ability to make the roster will rest in what he shows as returner in the preseason.

Break it down: While Holliday was a lightning-strike game changer at times, he didn't consistently give the Broncos the kind of field position they wanted.

Like any team, the Broncos would like more opportunities at a short field on offense. With all they did on offense last season to become the league's first 600- point team, the Broncos' average drive start was their own 28-yard line, or exactly the same as their opponents' average drive start against them. They also started 50 drives inside their own 20-yard line, or 12 more than their opponents did.

In the end, Prater gives the Broncos the ability to score from deep in the kicking game -- he has 20 career field goals of at least 50 yards including the league record 64-yarder this past season -- and Colquitt consistently flips the field when the Broncos need him to.

And that's exactly what the Broncos paid for.

Pat Bowlen’s legacy goes beyond the championships

By Lindsay H. Jones USA TODAY Sports July 23, 2014

DENVER – Sixteen years ago, Pat Bowlen said the most famous four words in Denver sports history: This one’s for John.

On that January night in 1998, when Bowlen handed the Lombardi Trophy to quarterback John Elway, it was the greatest moment in franchise history. There would be another Super Bowl win a year later, another chance for Bowlen and Elway to hold that trophy, yet This One’s For John will remain the iconic memory of Bowlen, who owned the team from 1984 through this week, when he formally resigned as owner of the team because he is suffering from Alzheimer’s Disease.

Bowlen, who ceded day-to-day operations to team president Joe Ellis in 2011, has placed his ownership stake into the Pat Bowlen Trust. The Bowlen family and the Broncos made it clear in statements released Wednesday morning that the team will not be sold.

Yet Bowlen’s legacy in Denver is far greater than those championship moments. Bowlen, for much of his tenure with the team, was a hands-on owner, and “Mr. B.” – as he was known by everyone in the building — was beloved by the players and employees who worked for him.

Even in recent years, as it became clear to anyone who saw him that his health was deteriorating, Bowlen was a fixture at Dove Valley. He showed up for work each day, he would amble onto the field to watch practice, and he’d frequently be spotted walking through the parking lot in gym clothes for his daily workout. Bowlen, even as his mind was beginning to fail, was an athlete – a former Ironman triathlete and marathoner.

My earliest memories of Bowlen are likely the same as other Coloradoans in my generation – kids who grew up watching Elway and the Three Amigos and Karl Mecklenberg. We remember Bowlen, in a fur coat, stalking the sidelines of playoff games in the late 1980s. He was early in his ownership then. It was before he grew into one of the most respected owners in pro sports through his leadership roles on the NFL’s broadcast and labor committees and his team’s tradition of winning. In three decades, Bowlen’s teams won more than 300 games, along with 11 AFC West titles, six AFC Championships and the two Super Bowls. Bowlen spent money when he felt it was necessary, and made tough decisions when he felt he had to as well.

Perhaps the most difficult decision came in 2008, at the end of my first season covering the team, when he fired head coach Mike Shanahan, whom Bowlen had once called the team’s “coach for life.” Shanahan’s firing came after an 8-8 season, and a third season in a row out of the playoffs. The day after the firing, the men who shared the Super Bowl wins shared an interview podium at a joint press conference, a rare sight but an indication of just how much Shanahan respected Bowlen, even after the firing.

Bowlen and the Broncos chose to hire Josh McDaniels, but quickly moved to fire him – Bowlen’s fourth firing – less than two years later when it was clear to both Bowlen and Ellis that they had made a mistake. Before Bowlen gave Ellis the title of team president, he made one final major personnel decision.

Bowlen had once handed Elway the Lombardi Trophy, and now he gave Elway control of his team.

Last January, Bowlen was on the field at Sports Authority Field at Mile High – a stadium he built (with taxpayer help) in 2001 – to share in another AFC Championship. He stood on stage, surrounded by swirling confetti, and held another trophy. He beamed.

Bowlen never got to win another Super Bowl, but as the Broncos report to training camp today, I expect we’ll hear the same refrain. This year, the team wants to win it for Mr. B.

Pat Bowlen was a true player's owner with Broncos

By Lindsay H. Jones USA TODAY Sports July 23, 2014

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. – How many NFL owners would annually challenge his employees to a college football pick 'em pool?

That's just one of the things that made Pat Bowlen, who resigned Wednesday as owner of the Broncos because of Alzheimer's disease, so unique, former Broncos safety John Lynch said – even if Bowlen's pick was predictable.

"He always picked Oklahoma. So if Oklahoma was good, he was good," Lynch told USA TODAY Sports, laughing. "We just had a blast."

Lynch met Bowlen years before he eventually signed with the Broncos, as both Lynch and Bowlen and their families crossed paths winter after winter while on ski vacations at Beaver Creek. When Mike Shanahan recruited Lynch to the Broncos as a free agent in 2004, Lynch's history with Bowlen – and Denver's proximity to his favorite ski resort – were among the reasons he chose the Broncos.

Not long after Lynch signed his contract, Bowlen called him into his office.

"I know you love it. But you're a member of the Denver Broncos. You don't ski anymore," Lynch recalled Bowlen saying. "I was like 'What?! That's part of the reason I signed here!' "

Lynch kept him promise to Bowlen to stay off Colorado's ski slopes. (But not the ones in Montana. "I couldn't give it up," Lynch said, laughing.)

Bowlen had that sort of personal relationship with likely hundreds of players, most of whom affectionately called him "Mr. B." in his three decades owning the Broncos. Though he let the coaches he hired coach, and the general managers he hired build the roster, Bowlen wanted to know his players. And they wanted to know him back.

"Players wanted him to be around," general manager John Elway said. "He was down at practice, and he was at training camp. He was one of those, and as a player, you love to see your owner on the field and around, because then you know it means a lot to him. "

Nothing meant more to Elway than when Bowlen handed him the Lombardi Trophy, with the words, "This one's for John," after the Broncos won their first Super Bowl championship in January 1998. Elway made a wisecrack Wednesday that he was shocked to receive Bowlen's praise because, "heck, I only threw for 130 yards," he said, yet to both men, the moment was bigger than just that one day. Elway was in his second year when Bowlen bought the team in 1984, and together they had endured three previous Super Bowl losses.

"It was probably the most humbling, thrilled feeling I've ever had in my life, when we were finally able to win that championship, and Pat handed me that trophy," Elway said. "There will never be a more special time in my career than when he said that."

But it wasn't just the major moments that endeared Bowlen to his players.

Former Broncos quarterback Jake Plummer told USA TODAY Sports he always felt like Bowlen was listening to players, and that he was responsive to even the most minor requests. When players asked for televisions in the locker room so they could watch sports in their down time, days later Bowlen had them installed. When players complained that there was no place to eat at the facility while players were there for offseason workouts, Bowlen had a cafeteria built.

It wasn't uncommon, Plummer said, for Bowlen to join players for lunch in that cafeteria, or for Bowlen to be working in the gym alongside side them.

"It was awesome playing for an owner that really cared about the players, first and foremost," Plummer said. "Playing with the Arizona Cardinals and then coming to the Broncos, it was just a totally different mentality from the owner. Everything he did was about the players. He wanted us to be as comfortable as possible and as little to think about as possible so we could think about what we were there to do, and that was to play football."

Plummer's football tenure with the Broncos ended poorly, benched by Mike Shanahan 2006 for rookie Jay Cutler, and he spent several years disconnected from the franchise after retiring and moving to Idaho. That changed two years ago when Bowlen invited Plummer to visit the team facility and watch the 2012 season opener against Pittsburgh in Bowlen's private suite at Sports Authority Field at Mile High.

"It wasn't his call, and that's another reason why he's a great owner. He lets his football people, whether it's the head coach or GM, make those kind of decisions. I knew that he respected me and I knew there was never anything I did wrong for him to have a reason to dislike me as a player," Plummer said. "He welcomed me with open arms, and not just me, everyone who played in a Bronco uniform. He loves it. He said he lives for that, to see his old players come back through those doors and rekindle that feeling you had when you were playing." Meet Joe Ellis, the man taking over the Denver Broncos for Pat Bowlen

By Lindsay H. Jones USA TODAY Sports July 23, 2014

DENVER — Though Pat Bowlen relinquished ownership of the Denver Broncos this week as he battles Alzheimer's disease, little will change in the day-to-day operations of the team.

That's because Bowlen four years ago named Joe Ellis as team president, and Ellis has handled all of the major decisions the team has made since, with Bowlen's advisement and approval. Ellis officially now adds the title of chief executive officer.

Ellis has a long history with the Broncos, dating back to the early 1980s when he started as an intern in the team's marketing department, where he was working when Bowlen purchased the team in 1984. He left the team to pursue his Master's in Business Administration at Northwestern and spent eight years working for the NFL, rising through the ranks of the league office alongside commissioner Roger Goodell.

Ellis, a first cousin of former President George W. Bush, returned to the Broncos in 1998, and has played a major role in projects like building of Sports Authority Field at Mile High (which opened in 2001) and the current massive renovation project at the Paul D. Bowlen Memorial Centre, the team's headquarters in Englewood, Colo. The current project includes a complete overhaul of the team's existing facility, as well as construction of a field house that is set to be completed this fall.

Ellis was also a driving force behind the team's decision to hire John Elway as executive president of football operations in 2011.

Ellis, in addition to his personal history with Goodell, is well known in league circles, having attended owner's meetings for at least a decade. He was the Broncos' voting representative at the meetings this March.

The Ellis file:

• Graduated from Colorado College in 1980.

• First joined the Broncos in 1983 as their director of marketing.

• Left the Broncos after the 1985 season to pursue a master's degree from Northwestern University, where he graduated in 1988. • Joined the NFL in 1990 as vice president of club administration and stadium management.

• Returned to the Broncos in 1998 as executive vice president of business operations.

• Was promoted to chief operating officer in 2008 and to team president on Jan. 5, 2011, with responsibility on ownership, business and football matters.

• Married to wife, Ann, with three children: sons Si and Zander and daughter Catherine.

• Cousin of former U.S. president George W. Bush and nephew of former president George H.W. Bush. (Ellis mother is the elder Bush's sister.)

Emotional John Elway cries while discussing Broncos owner

By Lindsay H. Jones USA TODAY Sports July 23, 2014

ENGLEWOOD, Colo — The first day of training camp for the Denver Broncos began with tears.

John Elway broke down and needed to pause to compose himself several times Wednesday as he reflected on the revelation that Broncos owner Pat Bowlen has relinquished ownership of the team because he is suffering from Alzheimer's disease.

"This place will never be the same," Elway said.

Elway played for Bowlen from 1984-1998, and they won two Super Bowls together. After the first title, Bowlen shocked Elway when he handed him the Lombardi Trophy with the words, "This one's for John."

That moment forever linked Bowlen and Elway together. But their partnership was formalized even further in 2011, when Bowlen entrusted Elway with all football operations.

The Broncos have won the AFC West in each of the three seasons since. Last year advanced to their first Super Bowl since Elway retired.

"My job is to run the football side the way Pat Bowlen wants it to be run. Being around him for 30 years, I know what he wants," Elway said.

To Elway, that means a singular focus on trying to win the Super Bowl, and that remains the goal for 2014 as players reported Wednesday to a somber Paul D. Bowlen Memorial Centre — the training center Bowlen named after his father.

Though Bowlen's mental health has been deteriorating in recent years, he remained a fixture at the team facility. He was in his office nearly every day during training camp and the regular season, and frequently watched practice from the sidelines. He often would stop by into the offices of Elway or team president Joe Ellis, even as he had handed over the day-to-day responsibilities of running the team to those two men. Ellis on Wednesday assumed Bowlen's title of Chief Executive Officer of the Broncos. "He didn't walk through the door this morning, and that's hard for people. That's really hard for people here and it's really hard for his family," Ellis said. "It's really sad."

Bowlen placed his ownership into a trust, part of a succession plan he had been working on for a decade, with the hope that one his seven children will eventually take over as owner and CEO.

Ellis declined to talk about a timeline for when that could occur. He said he met with Bowlen's wife, Annabel, and five of his children this week, and the family is focused on Bowlen's health now.

"That's what they are coming to grips with. That's what is so agonizing for them, and the future person or child that sits in their father's seat is not in the front or the back of their mind right now," Ellis said.

Logistically, little will change with the day to day operations for the Broncos. Ellis, promoted from chief operating officer to president in 2011, when he and Bowlen together decided to hire Elway, has had authority over all team matters, with Bowlen's consultation. That includes decisions like signing quarterback Peyton Manning to a five-year, $96 million contract in 2012, or a $35 million upgrade to the Broncos headquarters in Englewood, which includes a complete renovation to the existing building and the construction of a massive field house.

Ellis, who started with the Broncos in 1983 and worked in the NFL office in the 1990s, has recently represented at the NFL owner's meetings, voting in Bowlen's stead on the team's behalf.

"On the business side, everybody understands what Pat wants. Pat wants to be the best at everything, and he wants us to do everything the right way," Ellis said.

Broncos linebacker Von Miller cleared for training camp

By Lindsay H. Jones USA TODAY Sports July 23, 2014

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — The Denver Broncos lost five defensive starters to season- ending injuries or illness during their Super Bowl run last season. All but one of them has been cleared to practice when the team begins training camp on Thursday.

Outside linebacker Von Miller (ACL), defensive tackle Kevin Vickerson (hip), safety Rahim Moore (lower leg) and defensive end Derek Wolfe (neck/illness) have been cleared to practice, though coach John Fox said some of those players will be limited as camp begins.

Miller, injured in the second-to-last regular season game, had surgery in January. He was able to do individual drills during voluntary practices and the minicamp last month. His workload should steadily increase as camp progresses. Fox, however, said the Broncos would be cautious.

Only cornerback Chris Harris, who suffered his torn ACL in a divisional round playoff win against San Diego in January, will start camp on the physically unable to perform list.

"He's on schedule," head coach John Fox said of Harris. "I'm not sure I've ever seen a guy work that hard to rehab. … It's grueling."

Broncos: Pat Bowlen, Colorado’s constant

By Paul Klee The Colorado Springs Gazette July 23, 2014 As a kid, you don’t always think about why things happen. We often just kind of accept them as facts of life.

And so it goes for a kid growing up in Colorado. We didn’t wonder why the Broncos are almost always good; we just kind of figured those are the rules. Another NFL season, another good Broncos team. The same was true for me. Ten-year-old Paul didn’t wonder why the Broncos were almost always good. They just were.

Coaches came and went. Players came and went. Steve Atwater, unfortunately, came and went. But now that we’ve been exposed to another few decades of the same, we are able to recognize the one constant.

Pat Bowlen.

With Bowlen as owner, the Broncos have more Super Bowl appearances (six) than they have losing seasons (five). Do you know what the Raiders, Chiefs or Chargers would give for that kind of record? Or the Bengals, Lions or Bills? Or the Seahawks? Or 90-something percent of the current NFL?

That’s one reason why, as John Elway said, “This is a sad, sad day.” Colorado is losing one of its few remaining constants. With Bowlen resigning control of the Broncos due to his ongoing fight with Alzheimer’s, we are losing something we could always count on.

You could always count on Bowlen’s Broncos. If not now, then next season.

The news today wasn’t a surprise. Bowlen hasn’t been as visible in recent years, aside from a cameo at training camp or walking into Dove Valley with a family member. There was a basic understanding among a few every-day media that the news of his health would break when Bowlen and his family wanted it to break. Some things are bigger than getting the scoop, and a man’s privacy, in a case as severe as this, is one.

I’m not an expert on Alzheimer’s, but my grandfather had some form of it, and it’s the worst. If there were one thing I could eradicate from the earth, it might be that.

“If you’ve had a relative afflicted by this disease,” Joe Ellis said this morning, “You know what that’s like.”

It’s awful. When the news arrived with a thud, I thought about asking former Broncos for their thoughts on Bowlen’s legacy and their memories of playing for him. What he said to them. What he expected from them. What he meant to them.

And I’m sure that will still happen. The 2014 season, in some way, shape or form, will be dedicated to Bowlen, whether than means a “Mr. B” patch on the jersey or a teary “This one’s for Pat” from Elway, if the Broncos win the Super Bowl. He will go in the Ring of Fame, sooner rather than later, and I’m told Bowlen will argue it, because he never wanted it to be about him. There will be other times to ask players for their thoughts on Bowlen.

But right now those questions would be directed at the wrong people. With Bowlen, it has always been about someone else. It has always been about you, the fans.

It has been about 16-year-old Mark Jansen struggling to play in a basketball game at Denver Christian High School the night the Broncos lost to the Jaguars in the playoffs. But Mark knew the Broncos would be really good again the next season, just because. They won the next two Super Bowls.

It has been about Ryan Johnson watching the 2010 Broncos and wondering when the Josh McDaniels era would come to a merciful end. But Ryan knew it wouldn’t be long, just because. They fired McDaniels, and the next season began a streak of three consecutive playoff berths.

It has been about Justin Neerhof leaving a Super Bowl party in February because watching a Broncos loss was too much to handle. But he knew the Broncos would be really good again next season, well, just because.

By now we all know the just because. Just because they were Bowlen’s Broncos.

“Pat Bowlen doesn’t hang banners for second,” Justin said.

It’s true. If the Broncos weren’t in the Super Bowl hunt — not the playoff hunt, but the Super Bowl hunt — Bowlen wrote the necessary checks and made the necessary moves to put the Broncos back in that position.

I don’t know Mr. Bowlen, other than a handshake in the locker room, or a head nod on the practice field. What I do know, what I lived as a Colorado kid and now as a Colorado writer, is what he stands for. So do you. He stands for the fans.

It has always been about Mark and Ryan and Justin and you, more than anyone else. Bowlen always knew what the Broncos mean to Colorado and made certain that fans had what they wanted, whether it was a shiny new stadium, Peyton Manning at quarterback or a more comfortable setting to watch training camp. (The latter is happening now.) He made certain the right people are in charge as he exits, and Joe Ellis and John Elway are the right people to have in charge.

Both men cried as they spoke about Bowlen today (above).

“Pat wants to be the best at everything, and he wants to be the best the right way,” Ellis said. “I wouldn’t be anywhere close to where I am today if it wasn’t for Pat Bowlen,” Elway said.

Neither would the Broncos. We never asked why the Broncos were almost always good, but now we’re old enough to know. It was because of the one constant, Pat Bowlen.

Ramsey: Elway will carry Bowlen's spirit into Broncos future

By David Ramsey The Colorado Springs Gazette July 23, 2014 ENGLEWOOD - John Elway, the man most responsible for the Broncos' past six trips to the Super Bowl, struggled to speak. He was paying tribute to his mentor, Pat Bowlen, and he had so much to say.

But the words wouldn't come.

"Ah," Elway said, his eyes glistening. "Ah."

The quarterback who courageously defied marauding NFL linebackers was frightened of a Broncos future without Bowlen, his employer who doubles as his close friend.

On a personal level, this was a sad day. Bowlen is a physically fit 70-year-old who should have enjoyed another decade directing his Broncos, but Alzheimer's robbed his mind of the ability to guide the team.

And yet .

On the football field, there is no reason to worry about the Broncos. If you want to understand the secret of Bowlen's success during his 30-year run as owner of the Broncos, look at No. 7.

Yes, look at Elway.

During the 19 seasons (1983-99 and 2011-2013) of Elway's association with the franchise, the Broncos traveled to the Super Bowl six times and competed in 28 playoff games. During the dozen seasons (1999-2010) of Elway's Bronco exile, the franchise failed to travel to the Super Bowl and competed in only five playoff games. Yes, I realize Peyton Manning did much to revive the Broncos, but No. 18 would never have traveled to Denver without Elway as his recruiter.

An owner can become infamous much easier than he can become famous. Just look at Washington's Danny Snyder. Snyder is a brilliant man when it comes to business. He's a wandering buffoon when it comes to football.

Bowlen understood his limits. He should be applauded for what he did not do.

He did not meddle.

He did not try to act as if he knew everything about football. He did not interfere with the experts he hired to run his team.

Bowlen never caught a pass, never threw a touchdown, never devised a game plan. Still, he earned the admiration and affection of millions of Broncos fans. They could see him on the sideline, at first in those dreadful fur coats before he reformed and turned to dignified dark suits. Those fans sensed the Broncos were led by an owner who loved the team as much as they did.

They could see the pain in his eyes after losses. They could see he demanded, almost required, victory. Other than his family, nothing meant more to Bowlen than his Broncos.

But he wasn't just an extremely wealthy fan. Bowlen did not have a deep understanding of football. He did have a deep understanding of excellence.

His hunger for dominance ruled him. This meant he was never afraid to fire coaches. He waved goodbye to Mike Shanahan, his close friend. And he quickly admitted he had made a grave mistake in hiring Josh McDaniels, the boy blunder.

This message always hovered over the Broncos: Win, or else.

"There was always a gentle, subtle pressure," Elway said.

Bowlen is a complicated man. Stoic, distant, prideful, shy and awkward. A Colorado enigma, even after 30 years as leader of our state's secular religion.

But he had a strong sense of timing. On the greatest moment in Broncos history, the Super Bowl trophy was handed to Bowlen after a win-for-the-ages over Brett Favre and the Packers.

Bowlen, in a humble, genius move, quickly handed the trophy to Elway while shouting, "This one's for John."

Elway lowered his head Wednesday as he thought back to the moment. He swears he was surprised by Bowlen's gesture, largely because he had struggled mightily in the game, throwing for only 123 yards.

"Probably the most humbling, thrilled feeling I've ever had in my life," Elway said.

That feeling, the one of ruling over the football universe, is the blessing Bowlen and Elway delivered to Broncos fans.

On a gloomy Wednesday, that feeling seemed long ago as Elway paid his regards to his friend.

Bowlen chased ultimate victory with everything inside him. There is no doubt about that.

But don't worry.

The same unquenchable hunger lives within Elway.

John Elway wants Pat Bowlen to join him in Hall of Fame By David Ramsey The Colorado Springs Gazette July 23, 2014

John Elway wants Pat Bowlen to join him as a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

"Absolutely," Elway said Wednesday as he talked with three dozen members of the media. "I mean I'd love (Bowlen's bust] to be right next to mine."

There are 12 owners who have busts at the Hall of Fame, located in Canton, Ohio.

Bowlen boasts six trips to the Super Bowl and two NFL titles during his 30 seasons as Broncos owner.

Elway and Broncos coach John Fox complimented Bowlen on his hands-on approach to leadership. Fox said Bowlen attended all of the Broncos practices before the Super Bowl. These visits came despite often frigid temperatures.

But Bowlen, Elway said, never became a meddlesome owner.

"He did not," Elway said. "He was all ears. When he came into the football business, he admitted the fact that he knew about the business side, but he didn't know a whole heck of a lot about the football side. He was always listening and asking questions. . Pat was always curious and wanted to know why. He'd ask the questions, but no, he was never a guy who came in and meddled."

Elway talked as if he expects Bowlen to become a member of the Hall of Fame.

"I think that, at some point in time, should happen, especially with what he's done for this league, what he's done for the game of football," Elway said. "Because he's been an integral part of the growth of the NFL in the last 30 years."

Bowlen in the Hall of Fame, Elway said, "would be the best thing that could ever happen."

Broncos owner Pat Bowlen resigns control of team, fighting Alzheimer's

By Will Brinson CBSSports.com July 23, 2014

Broncos owner Pat Bowlen resigned his position of CEO as he continues to fight a battle against Alzheimer's, the team said in a statement to the Denver Post on Wednesday.

Bowlen, 70, had "taken a reduced role" in previous years, the team said in a statement to the paper, but now no longer officially has control of the team.

Team president Joe Ellis will take over control of the team.

"It's a really, really sad day," Ellis said. "It's sad for his family, his wife and his seven children. It's sad for everyone in the organization. And it's sad for all the Bronco fans who know what Pat Bowlen meant to them as an owner. It's a day nobody wanted to see happen."

Under Bowlen's ownership, the Broncos won a pair of Super Bowls with Mike Shanahan coaching and John Elway under center.

"The Broncos are very saddened that Mr. Bowlen is no longer able to be part of the team's daily operations due to his condition. We continue to offer our full support, compassion and respect to 'Mr. B,' who has faced Alzheimer's disease with such dignity and strength," the Broncos said in a statement. "As Mr. Bowlen focuses on his health, the Broncos have announced changes to their leadership structure that will ensure the long-term stability of the franchise."

Part of that structure will have Ellis serve as the team's steward moving forward, a plan NFL commissioner Roger Goodell acknowledged to the Post was fine, while also mourning the loss of Bowlen as an owner.

"This is a sad day for the NFL. Pat Bowlen's leadership has been critical to the success of the Broncos and the entire NFL," Goodell said. "From building a championship team that is a pillar of the community to his important work for the league on television and labor matters, Pat's love of the game drove him and we have all benefited from his passion and wisdom. But the time has come for Pat to focus on his health and we fully support him. "Joe Ellis has been a trusted executive for Pat for many years after working with us at the league office. Joe's deep experience ensures that the Broncos will continue to have strong leadership."

According to the team's statement, The Pat Bowlen Trust was established in order to properly assist in a succession plan.

It's "overseen by non-family trustees" and focuses on the goal of keeping "the Broncos in the Bowlen family."

"Mr. Bowlen's long-term hope is for one of his children to run the Broncos at the appropriate time, and his succession plan will continue to be implemented by our organization in compliance with NFL ownership policies," the team said in a statement.

"Going forward, Pat Bowlen's indelible contributions to the Broncos, the NFL and this community will continue to define his three decades of ownership and serve as the standard he has set for his franchise."

Bowlen has more than 300 victories as owner including his two Super Bowl victories and six AFC Championship titles.

Back in June, CBS Sports NFL Insider Jason La Canfora had this to say on the long- term plans of the Broncos, which could involve some prominent names eventually taking over:

Many around the league believe executive John Elway, long like a son to Bowlen, could eventually be a part of a group that might take over the team, and while current Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning has been most closely linked to eventually joining Jimmy Haslam's ownership group in Cleveland, perhaps it's not out of the question two Hall of Fame quarterbacks unite as part of a conglomerate to take over the Broncos in time as well.

Lynch on Bowlen: He's the ultimate owner, in my mind

By Sam Gardner FOXSports.com July 23, 2014

The Denver Broncos announced Wednesday morning that owner Pat Bowlen will be stepping down, relinquishing control of the team he has run since 1984 to Broncos president Joe Ellis as Bowlen battles Alzheimer’s disease.

The news of Bowlen’s declining health did not come as a surprise to those who knew him well, as well as some who didn’t, with reports dating as far as 2009 indicating that Bowlen was struggling with memory loss. The official nature of Bowlen’s acknowledgement of the disease has been difficult to process for those nearest to the team.

“It's a really, really sad day,” Ellis said in a statement to the Denver Post. “It's sad for his family, his wife and his seven children. It's sad for everyone in the organization. And it's sad for all the Bronco fans who know what Pat Bowlen meant to them as an owner. It's a day nobody wanted to see happen.”

FOX NFL commentator John Lynch played for Bowlen for four seasons in Denver, and said that while it’s been difficult to see the owner’s health decline in recent years, he still anticipates that Bowlen’s influence will be felt every time the Broncos take the field.

“I think Joe will do a tremendous job, and he’s worked with Mr. B for a long, long time,” Lynch said. “John Elway is the same way. For a lot of people, that season last year would have been a great season, but not for the Denver Broncos, because they really are all about one thing, and that’s winning world championships. They came close but fell short, and I think his impact will always be felt on that organization.”

After spending 11 seasons in Tampa Bay, Lynch joined the Broncos as a free agent in 2004 and made the Pro Bowl at safety in each of his final four years. Lynch says Bowlen’s impact on the club and his dedication to winning were a large part of the reason he decided to sign with Denver.

“He’s the ultimate owner in my mind,” Lynch said. “He, I just think, was the perfect mix -- someone who was passionate and clear in his vision for the franchise, which was to win world championships. And everything he did demonstrated that. “He walked the walk and it was so clear that that’s what his vision was. His philosophy was to hire really good people and let them do their jobs. He was there every day but he let people do their work and just was a support system, and, furthermore, was just an incredibly likable man.”

Not surprisingly, Bowlen’s Broncos teams did win championships -- two of them, in back-to-back seasons in the mid-'90s -- and reached the Super Bowl a total of six times since Bowlen’s family bought the team for $78 million 30 years ago. A lot of the Broncos’ sustained success, Lynch believes, is directly tied to the way Bowlen treats the plays who work for him.

“He was a constant presence,” Lynch said. “He wasn’t overbearing or meddling, but he was always there for you, and you knew the Denver Broncos organization was going to do things first class, do things right. A lot of (the team’s success) was because of the way he did things, and it permeates from the top. It trickles down, and he set a tremendous example.”

The most recent Super Bowl appearance came in February, and though the Broncos lost to the Seattle Seahawks, that Denver was in it at all was a fitting tribute to Bowlen and his impact.

“It means everything,” Lynch said. “I think every owner states that, ‘We’re about winning championships,’ but he means it. Everything he does -- there’s been a perfect synergy in bringing back John Elway because he knew John could bring them a championship again, or at least that was his hope. So I think having that opportunity to be there, that’s why he owns that team. That’s what he relishes, and I think it made him proud.

“Obviously it didn’t end up the way he wanted or anyone else wanted, but I’m sure there was a tremendous amount of pride for Mr. B, and he’ll be watching (this year) and hopefully they get right back there and it’s a different turnout this time.”

Lynch, himself, has experience dealing with Alzheimer’s, as he lost one of his grandfathers to the disease. One of the things he took away from that experience, he says, was the acceptance that some days will just be better than others and the ability to focus on the good days over the bad.

“My wife and I and my family were skiing earlier this year and we ran into Mr. Bowlen, and his beautiful wife Annabel said he was really having one of his great days,” Lynch said. “He gets so excited when he sees one of his former players, and we just had a tremendous time. There are days that aren’t so good, too, but that day was a tremendous day, and it’s a memory that I’ll relish forever, along with many others.” And though the nature of the disease is such that those afflicted with it don’t tend to get better, Lynch says he’ll choose not to dwell on the diagnosis that is taking him away from the team he loves so much.

“It’s a brutal disease because people who have so much to offer emotionally and intellectually -- you can see that the thoughts are there, but they just can’t express them, and it’s hard,” Lynch said. “It’s frustrating, particularly for a man like Mr. Bowlen who is so prideful of himself, and in great shape.

“You don’t know why God gives you those challenges, but we had great years with my grandfather when he had Alzheimer’s for many, many years. And even though they lose some of their ability to communicate their thoughts, there’s still so much that they have to offer, and Mr. Bowlen is no different.

“ ... It’s not a fun disease to watch someone who has so much aptitude and so much to offer -- you can see the frustration when I’ve been around him in recent times, when he tries to get thoughts out and can’t,” Lynch added.

“But he’s still a joy to be around and is still an incredible person. The only thing now is he won’t be involved in the day-to-day operations, and that’s sad, but I choose to celebrate what a tremendous owner he’s been and what an impactful person he’s been for the Denver community, the state of Colorado and Broncos fans all over.”

John Elway cries talking about Broncos owner Pat Bowlen

By Frank Schwab Yahoo! Sports July 23, 2014

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. – John Elway sat down to talk about Pat Bowlen, and after a few opening words there was silence.

Elway looked down, trying to compose himself. After a long pause he finally exhaled loudly. It never got easier.

On Wednesday the Broncos announced that Bowlen, the team's owner for 30 years, is suffering from Alzheimer’s disease. He has stepped down completely from running the team. The sadness at the Broncos' facility, as players reported for training camp, was palpable. Nobody in the organization was hit harder by the news than Elway.

Not long after Elway, the team's general manager, continued to speak about Bowlen, following his long pause, he started crying. It was as emotional as he has been in public since his retirement media conference in 1999.

"This place will never be the same," he said.

The news about Bowlen might not have had an enormous effect around the country because Bowlen wasn't a celebrity owner. And that's what made him so popular in Denver.

Bowlen was a fixture at Broncos practice (coach John Fox told a story about Bowlen being at every practice during Super Bowl week last season, bad New Jersey weather be damned), but almost never stopped to talk to the media about the team. That wasn't his style. He's a quiet person by nature, and he let his coaches and executives do their jobs. He had no interest in the spotlight or being involved with player acquisition, just winning football games.

Bowlen had one memorable public moment, and of course it was with Elway. When the Broncos won Super Bowl XXXII, the team's first title, Bowlen raised the Lombardi Trophy and proclaimed, "This one's for John!" Elway said he had no idea it was coming.

"It was probably the most humbling, thrilled feeling I’ve ever had in my life," Elway said. Elway was in his second year with the Broncos when Bowlen bought the team. He has basically been working for Bowlen ever since. Not long after retirement, Elway ran the Arena Football League's Colorado Crush, a team that Bowlen shared ownership of. Elway said that when the Broncos hired him in 2011 to run the team's football operations, it was because Bowlen's instincts told him Elway was ready. And he was right.

Elway talked about being a general manager under Bowlen. If something was wrong, Bowlen would want to know why. It was "gentle, subtle pressure," as Elway put it. But Bowlen never meddled. Elway built the Broncos as he saw fit, and Bowlen trusted him. The team has been the No. 1 seed in the AFC playoffs each of the last two years.

Nobody has meant more to the Denver Broncos than Elway, and in many ways nobody meant more to Elway than Bowlen.

"I wouldn't be anywhere close to where I am today if it wasn't for Pat Bowlen," Elway said.

The Broncos' message was that everything remains on course. Bowlen had plans in place to put the team into a trust, and the plan is for ownership to stay in the family. Joe Ellis, the team's president and CEO, will assume day-to-day business operations – but he had been doing that for a while as Bowlen's health deteriorated. Elway will continue to run the front office. Ellis said the plan is for one of Bowlen's seven children will "earn the right" to one day run the team. But it's mostly business as usual for the Broncos right now. It's just that they already miss Bowlen being around.

"He didn't step through the door this morning," said Ellis, who had many tears of his own as he spoke to the media. "That's hard. That's really hard."

As Pat Bowlen steps away, Broncos celebrate a man who shaped the NFL

By Joan Niesen SI.com July 23, 2014

ENGLEWOOD, Colo.—The man is measured in the pauses. There’s silence, and breathing, the gasps that delay the inevitable gulp, the gulp that precedes the unavoidable tears.

He’s measured in the red that rose in Broncos president Joe Ellis’ cheeks as answering questions became harder and harder, as he apologized for speaking in the past tense about a man who’s still alive.

The man is Pat Bowlen, and on Wednesday in Denver, the Broncos owner’s health overshadowed the opening of his team’s training camp -- just as it should have. The night before, Bowlen, 70, ceded control of his team after 30 years of ownership due to his battle with Alzheimer’s, a disease that took hold several years ago.

In statements released early Wednesday, the Broncos and Bowlen’s wife, Annabel, acknowledged that a plan had been put in place years ago to address this very situation and that the family intends to keep the team under its control for the foreseeable future. Going forward, the Broncos will be held by the Pat Bowlen Trust, with Ellis in charge and the hope of one of Bowlen’s children eventually assuming their father’s role.

That designation will usher in few, if any changes to the Broncos from a football or business perspective. Ellis’ day-to-day life will be no different, John Elway’s role as general manager will not change. But for the first time in three decades, Bowlen will no longer walk through the door of his team’s facility every morning, and this is the detail that brings grown men to tears.

“He didn’t walk through the door this morning, and that’s hard for people,” Ellis said. “It’s really hard for his family. It’s really sad. Everybody will stand together at the Broncos and the family and the NFL and in this community.”

"What a sad, sad day,” Elway said, later adding that he will lobby for Bowlen’s bust to stand next to his in Canton. “I can say that from the inside out, it will never be the same.

"He has given me so much. It's going to be hard to walk through those doors and not see him.” In a world where Donald Sterling is the most talked about owner in sports, men like Bowlen seem almost alien. He’s a man whose photo dots Elway’s office, who’s known to employees affectionately as “Mr. B,” who brings a stadium to its feet after the 300th win of his tenure. It sounds like a sports fairy tale, and yet it’s all true, every bit of it. Even as Alzheimer’s took hold, Bowlen reported dutifully to the Broncos’ facility south of Denver each day. He suffered the frigid temperatures of Super Bowl week in New York to stand on the sidelines of Denver’s practices, and even if he was just a figurehead by then, it mattered.

“Alzheimer’s has taken so much from Pat, but it will never take away his love for the Denver Broncos,” Annabel said in her statement.

For years, speculation about Bowlen’s health has been a whisper in Denver and around the NFL. In 2009, Bowlen revealed to Denver Post columnist Woody Paige that he had been suffering from short-term memory loss. In the years that followed, his presence at the team’s facility and on the sidelines waned, and yet it never became a story. It was Bowlen’s battle, his silence, and Denver respected it.

That respect was earned through two Super Bowl wins and six berths, through just five losing records in 30 seasons, through years of work on the NFL’s labor committee and broadcast committee. Bowlen is one of the men who helped shape the modern NFL, and sometimes it takes a day like Wednesday to remember and celebrate his contributions.

But it wasn’t a day to eulogize. As much as Ellis, Elway and coach John Fox slipped into the past tense in their remarks, each tried to steer the focus to the present and the future. Bowlen leaves a structure and a legacy, and it’s still his team, in something more than name and less than practice.

“The trustees are not owners,” Ellis said. “They are in charge of the trust. Pat Bowlen is the owner. I don’t know if that’s technically true or not -- I’m not a lawyer -- but that’s how I feel, and that’s how the family feels, and that’s how everybody at the Broncos feels.”

And so life will go on, for the Broncos and for Bowlen and his family. Condolences have poured in from around the NFL, and they will continue, and then they will subside. Football will begin. Peyton Manning will again become the name of the day, and the Broncos will continue to do what they’ve done for the majority of the past 30 years: win.

Asked whether Bowlen’s illness and his step back from the team would provide an added impetus to hoist the Lombardi Trophy this year, to win one for Mr. B, Elway was resolute. No. “We want to do it every season,” he said. “It’s the same amount of urgency that we always have each year going into it.” That’s just the kind of franchise Bowlen built.

The Secret to Being a Good O-Line Coach is C.O.O.L.

By Greg A. Bedard MMQB/SI.com July 24, 2014

CINCINNATI – It’s nearly 2 a.m. on a Friday night in May. There aren’t many people left in the closed down bar/restaurant that inhabits the top floor of the past-its- prime Millennium Hotel. The skyline of the Queen City twinkles in the background. You can see Paul Brown Stadium.

A circle of about eight chairs has formed in one corner of the room. Legendary retired offensive lineman and coach Howard Mudd is seated in one. Dan Dorazio, the offensive line coach for the B.C. Lions of the Canadian Football League, is in a chair near Mudd. They are discussing the finer points of the silent count, of which Mudd is the godfather from his days as an assistant coach with the Colts and Peyton Manning.

“Did you rely on a guard to tap the center?” Dorazio asks Mudd. In the offensive line world, it’s like asking Michelangelo how he went about painting ceilings.

“No, we didn’t do that,” Mudd says. “I’ve seen that done, people are doing it. It seems like it slows it down to me. We did the silent count under center and from shotgun. [Center] Jeff Saturday would either look through his legs for the indicator, or feel a tap on his ass [from the quarterback]. Then the center would lift his head and have a count in his head. He couldn’t even start counting until his head stopped. The other guys could see his head come up. They didn’t have to see the ball go.

“Now this thing about tapping. If I’m the guard, first of all I can’t be in a stance—I want my guards in a stance—and I have to look at the quarterback, see [the indicator], tap the center, then I have to come back and find my guy. Why are we making one guy blind when we don’t have to? I’m concerned about that.”

Dorazio nods.

“We have the guard extend his elbow and just touch the center on the hip, so he doesn’t have to take his eyes of his guy,” Dorazio says.

“He still has to look at the quarterback to get the indicator, right?” Mudd replies.

“Initially, yes,” Dorazio says. “Most of the time the center isn’t covered [i.e. doesn’t have a defensive player in his face],” Mudd says. “My concern is you’re asking a guy who is covered, to go look back here, hand out, not hand out, so I didn’t do it. The guards could help the center, if the [middle linebacker] was moving around, tell the center where he was.

“We just didn’t have any problems with it. None. There were never any problems. I tried to get them to try other stuff like that, but Peyton and Jeff would freak out. ‘Noooo! What’s wrong with what we’re doing, there’s nothing wrong with it!’ We were so good at it that Peyton wanted to use the silent count at home—we had less problems with it than a cadence. I still think there’s a risk turning around with a man in front of you.”

Dorazio tries explaining his rationale again, in a different way. This goes on for another 10 minutes.

“To me, it overly complicates it,” Mudd says. “That’s my two cents.”

Welcome to the Coaches of Offensive Linemen (C.O.O.L.) clinic.

* * *

For as long as anyone can remember, offensive line coaches have been in the sub class on coaching staffs. If you’ve ever attended a training camp practice, you’ve seen the big hogs practicing off by themselves in some far-flung corner, doing their own drills against each other. Before the advent of million-dollar training facilities that now dot the NFL, the offensive line was often relegated to the worst field, one that was barely maintained. They only get the call to work on the main fields during 11-on-11 work, or the occasional middle run drill. After that period is over, they trot back to their corner. Half the group picks up a blocking bag and imitates a defensive lineman. The other half goes through the reps of blocking a particular play.

There aren’t coaches for each place along the line—like one for tackles, another for interior linemen, etc.—as with just about every other position. There is one coach, and he might be lucky to have an assistant, for the five starters plus several backups.

When it comes to formulating play books and game plans, the offensive line coaches also get the short end of the stick. They’re often taken for granted. Bob Wylie, who has instructed at all levels of football from Pop Warner to the NFL and now the CFL, recalled once flipping through a playbook and seeing that the five circles for his unit had been replaced by one horizontal line.

“What the hell is this?” Wylie asked the coach. “You’ll get it blocked up,” he replied.

“How do you want it blocked?” Wylie asked.

“You figure it out,” the coach said.

It’s no wonder, then, that the logo for the annual C.O.O.L. clinic, is a mushroom. It’s on everything: the overhead projector, golf shirts, Mudd’s T-shirt, travel bags and even cookies.

“They keep us in the dark, feed us s— and expect us to grow,” Wylie says proudly. He has run the clinic since 1995. “We’re fungus, basically.”

And here, in the expansive ballroom of the Millennium, the mushroom assemble to grow together. They don’t get much help from their own staffs, so they congregate to share the techniques they’ve tried that have led to great success, and also some failures. It’s a support group, and one that’s damn proud.

“I don’t know if you appreciate this,” FSU offensive line coach Rick Trickett tells the crowd. “This is a hell of a get together. If you don’t find somebody to latch onto here, find somebody. This is what we do. We help each other.”

* * *

What now draws more than 400 coaches started in the Bengals offensive line room in the early 1980s when Jim McNally, the noted retired line coach who had success with the Bengals, Panthers and Bills, hosted about six other coaches (including future Cincinnati line coaches Paul Alexander and Wylie) to talk about and draw blocking schemes. The next year there were 18 in attendance. It didn’t take long for owner Mike Brown to frown upon the idea of the Bengals’ secrets being given out, so the get-together was taken off campus.

McNally is a bit of a guru in line circles. When Dante Scarnecchia became a line coach in 1989 with the Colts, the first thing he did was make a pilgrimage to Cincinnati to pick McNally’s brain. McNally, who’s 70 but is still in fantastic shape and enthusiastically demonstrates blocking techniques, hosts an offensive line retreat annually for those interested in further study.

Normally, the C.O.O.L. clinic reserves the anchor speaking position each day (Friday for college coaches, Saturday for NFL) for the coach of the reigning champions. Florida State line coach Rick Trickett gave an outstanding and often hilarious dissertation on the Seminoles’ stretch runs from different formations. Unfortunately, with the NFL draft pushed back this year, Seahawks line coach Tom Cable could not follow through on his previous commitment because of rookie camp. So it was legends Saturday at the clinic: Dante Scarnecchia (Patriots), Tony Wise (Cowboys), Wylie, Mudd, Jim McNally (ex-Bengals), Paul Alexander (current Bengals) and Dan Radakovich (Steelers).

From February through March, coaching clinics are held throughout the country. There are big, multi-city clinics like Nike Coach of the Year and Glazier, along with regional migrations like the Big New England. Attendees ranging from top high school coaches to NFL assistants get together to share their honed tricks of the trade. These sessions, normally conducted out of sight of media and very much off the record, are like traveling carnivals. You’ll smell cookies being baked in the hallway, bait to get a coach to hear a sales pitch on uniforms, pads, game-film programs, books, etc. A lot of networking happens. But at the heart of these clinics is a shared love of the game and commitment to learning how become better coaches.

All these tips, all these tricks, all this wealth of knowledge and years being shared— you don’t see offensive coordinators getting together to swap secrets, that’s for sure.

“We all learned things from someone else and I think it’s a duty of a conscionable human being to give back,” Alexander says, adding with a laugh, “and I think offensive line coaches, by and large, are more conscionable than others.”

I’ve attended my share of coaching clinics the past four years, strictly to educate myself on the game and what’s next. Stanford offensive coordinator Mike Bloomgren told me a year ago that I had to go to the C.O.O.L. clinic.

“It’s the best, by far,” he said.

* * *

Bloomgren was right. To know line play is to know football. The game is won and lost there. And I’m guessing most fans have little idea the intricacies of what goes into line play. The players might look like dancing bears on the line, but every movement is choreographed for the feet, hips and hands. One false move can blow up an entire play, ruin a series and lose game.

It’s enlightening to hear coaches talk (mostly over my head) about the training and techniques that go into line play. Most fans only know the offensive linemen if they do something bad. But, when performed correctly, line play is a work of art. A guard on the playside (where the play is going) needs to know what to do if there’s a defensive player in front of him (covered) or not (uncovered). If he’s covered, he has different techniques that are dependent on which way the defender moves. Then he might have responsibility for a linebacker after the initial push. And the rest of his linemates have to know exactly how he’ll react and block his own responsibility as well. It’s no wonder offensive linemen routinely have the highest Wonderlic scores of any position except quarterback, and go on to be coaches. These are not just giant slabs of beef.

And the level of their instruction matches their intelligence, especially if they have a coach like Trickett. He makes players flip positions for a few days to rejuvenate them.

“Those tackles do not like going back in to guard, I can promise you that,” Trickett says. “They think they have their stuff down. They go inside and they say, ‘Stuff happens a lot faster.’ Well, no s—. Try playing center. They like it outside. Of course they do. Any moron can play tackle. It’s all man on man out there. How complicated is that?”

Scarnecchia gave a dissertation of the Patriots’ wham/blast/bong power running game. He noted that the wham play started when he, Charlie Weis and Bill Belichick arrived at New England and married the Ron Erhardt and Joe Gibbs schemes.

Scarnecchia also gave a piece of advice that runs counter to the popular opinions that you run to se tup the pass, or pass to set up the run. What the good teams do—particularly noticeable with Peyton Manning or Tom Brady at quarterback—is run play-action not off runs, but instead to protect core runs. As soon as an offense sees the linebackers running down hill quickly to stop the runs, Scarnecchia says to hit them with the play-action. Not only will it likely result in a big play, but those linebackers will not be playing as fast the rest of the game.

Mudd, who demonstrated techniques despite being hobbled by injuries from his playing days with the 49ers and Bears, laid out many of his proven beliefs. For instance, he believes in blocking every play like a play-action pass with short sets by the linemen. And that “character and intelligence separates the players.”

Even the older offensive line coaches never stop learning. Scarnecchia sat with Bloomgren and Bob Connelly (Oklahoma State) while Mark Staten (Michigan State), Josh Henson (Missouri) and Trickett explained their view and how they teach zone runs. “I don’t think we said 20 words to each other in three hours listening to those guys,” Scarnecchia says. “You may not agree with everything, but you’re picking up certain things here and there. This is what it’s all about. That’s what these clinics are about.”

Most know that offensive line coaches love wrestlers because they understand leverage and are good athletes. That still holds true, but there is growing influence by the martial arts world on offensive line techniques. Alexander, whose Bengals have consistently been one of the NFL’s best units, teaches his charges to get their hands on the arms of defensive linemen to redirect them, or use a club move, instead of the time-tested punch at the point of attack. Alexander wants his guys to win before that point with their hands. When his players encounter a rusher who leads with one shoulder, Alexander wants them to get their arm extended on the outside to spin the rusher “like a top” by using leverage. Pushing just on the shoulder wouldn’t have nearly the same effect as a concentrated, angled blow. And the Bengals should never get stuck (held) by an outside rusher. They are trained, thanks to Judo techniques, to deflect the block and move around.

So much for the, “You block that guy,” from the old days.

Actually, there was a little of that, from Dan “Bad Rad” Radakovich, who was the Steelers’ defensive line coach for Chuck Noll in 1971, and O-line coach from ’74-77 (two Super Bowl titles). At 79, Radakovich is gruff, tough and intimidating. He’s a bit like Izzy Mandelbaum of Seinfeld fame—at any minute you expect him to point at you and ask, “You think you can lift more than me? It’s go time.”

Radakovich, who showed some great old practice film of the Steelers, had two coaching interns run through drills just about at full speed. Radakovich was no fan of many of the new-school techniques taught at the clinic. “Just drive block them,” he says.

Just as he was finishing, someone told Radakovich he’d forgotten to show the door drill. He immediately walked quickly to the large and heavy doors to the side of the ball room.

“You want to try to break his nose,” Radakovich instructed, without the slightest hint of a joke.

An intern got into blocking stance with one hand on the ground.

“Ready, hut!” Radakovich barked.

The intern sat back into his blocking stance as Radakovich swung the door at full speed. The intern punched his two hands out to stop it, looking exactly as an offensive lineman should.

“That’s the door drill,” Radakovich grumbled.

And that’s the C.O.O.L. clinic. Offensive line coaches, whether they’re old school or new, are a different breed. Or maybe it’s a different species of fungus.

Denver Broncos owner Pat Bowlen stepping back

By Chris Wesseling NFL.com/Around The League July 23, 2014

Owner Pat Bowlen is resigning control of the Denver Broncos, acknowledging that he is suffering from Alzheimer's disease.

Team president Joe Ellis will assume control of the organization, as Bowlen concentrates on his health.

"The Broncos are very saddened that Mr. Bowlen is no longer able to be part of the team's daily operations due to his condition," the team said in a statement. "We continue to offer our full support, compassion and respect to 'Mr. B,' who has faced Alzheimer's disease with such dignity and strength."

Bowlen, 70, has no intention of selling the team. He created the Pat Bowlen Trust a decade ago to ensure that ownership of the Broncos will remain in his family. The hope is that one of his seven children will eventually take over.

"This is a sad day for the NFL," Commissioner Roger Goodell said in a statement. "Pat Bowlen's leadership has been critical to the success of the Broncos and the entire NFL. From building a championship team that is a pillar of the community to his important work for the league on television and labor matters, Pat's love of the game drove him and we have all benefited from his passion and wisdom. But the time has come for Pat to focus on his health and we fully support him. Joe Ellis has been a trusted executive for Pat for many years after working with us at the league office. Joe's deep experience ensures that the Broncos will continue to have strong leadership."

Bowlen has been one of the most iconic figures in Colorado sports history.

Since Bowlen purchased the team and saved it from bankruptcy in 1984, the Broncos have gone to the Super Bowl in six of 16 playoff appearances, highlighted by back-to-back Lombardi Trophies in 1997 and 1998.

Bowlen's importance to the NFL, and Denver in particular, cannot be overstated. He brought stability to a franchise on the brink of disaster. Since taking ownership, the Broncos have posted 90 or more wins in three consecutive decades while managing the fewest losing seasons (five) in the league over that stretch. Although this is a sad day for the Broncos community, Bowlen has ensured that day-to-day operations will remain in steady hands thanks to general manager and executive VP of Football Operations, John Elway.

The two men are inextricably linked in NFL history. The organization's greatest success came with Elway running the offense and Bowlen handling the business aspects. Now the Broncos stand as the AFC's powerhouse, with Elway pulling the strings of the football operation and Ellis stepping in for Bowlen.

John Elway on Pat Bowlen: 'He's given me so much'

By Kevin Patra NFL.com/Around The League July 23, 2014

John Elway fought back emotions, voice cracking as he sought to explain what Pat Bowlen meant to the Denver Broncos.

"What a sad day it is around here," Elway said rawly. "This place will never be the same. I can say at least from the inside out, it will never be the same."

Bowlen resigned control of the Broncos organization on Wednesday, acknowledging that he is suffering from Alzheimer's disease.

"It's going to be very hard to not see him walk through those front door every day," Elway said breaking up. "He's given me so much, as a player, to be able to play for him...now having worked for him for three years he's given us every opportunity, every resource that he has to be able to put the best football team on the football field and compete for world championships and that is what Pat's all about."

The Broncos have known amazing amounts of success under Bowlen's guidance. Since he took over the team in 1984, only the 49ers have won more games and only the Patriots have gone to more Super Bowls. The highlight of Bowlen's reign was the back-to-back Super Bowl championships in 1997 and 1998.

The owner created the Pat Bowlen Trust a decade ago to ensure that ownership of the Broncos will remain in his family, with the hope that one of his seven children will eventually take over.

Team president Joe Ellis will assume control of the organization, but stressed the spirit of the Broncos still belongs to Bowlen.

"It's Pat Bowlen's team," said Ellis. "He's the owner, the trustees are not owners, Pat Bowlen is the owner."

‘This One’s For Pat’

By Brett Heinrzeling CBS4 Denver July 23, 2014

I was born and raised in Denver. More specifically, I was born and raised a Bronco fan. I remember watching games as far back as 1983. (I was 3.) The constant during that time, even more than the great John Elway, has been one man — Pat Bowlen.

When Bowlen took over, the Broncos facility was a tiny, makeshift complex near the mousetrap. Now it’s a state-of-the-art (still under construction) masterpiece.

Before Mr. Bowlen, the Broncos attracted such big-name signings as Craig Morton. Now the Broncos are the first choice of NFL greats with names like DeMarcus Ware, Aqib Talib, and some guy named Peyton.

The biggest change came in the 1997-98 season. That was the year the Broncos took home their first of two Super Bowl titles. Bowlen knew that at the time, the city of Denver, all of Colorado, heck, all of the NFL (except Cleveland) was rooting for the John Elway to finally get the monkey off his back. That made it all the more special when he hoisted the trophy and spoke for all of us, announcing “this one’s for John!”

The Broncos will never be the same without Mr. Bowlen roaming the sidelines in a mink coat (admit it, that’s how you will remember the man.) We won’t remember him as the man who made the decisions, at least not when it came to football. He was the anti-Jerry Jones.

Bowlen didn’t micro-manage the team. Instead, he did what an NFL owner should do. He hired the right people. He made Denver an attractive home for free agents. He turned the only team playing in the Mountain Time Zone into an NFL powerhouse.

The news that broke about Mr. Bowlen’s battle with Alzheimer’s disease is tragic. Because it has robbed the Broncos of an owner. Because it has robbed a family of a father, husband, grandfather. Because it has robbed Pat Bowlen of himself.

If Peyton Manning et al do what they should do this season, there will be no finer tribute than seeing John Elway standing on the podium holding up the beautiful silver trophy and telling the world that “this one’s for Pat.”

Robert Kraft heaps praise on departing Pat Bowlen

By Ben Volin The Boston Globe July 23, 2014

Robert Kraft and Pat Bowlen were rivals on the football field over the past two decades, with the Patriots and Broncos dominating the AFC and reaching nine Super Bowls in that span.

But Kraft has nothing but admiration for Bowlen as an owner who put the league’s interests ahead of his own and helped build the Broncos and the NFL into two powerful businesses in his 30 years leading the team.

Bowlen, who turned 70 this year, announced Wednesday morning that he is relinquishing his ownership stake in the Broncos and resigning as CEO due to his battle with Alzheimer’s. Broncos president Joe Ellis, a Massachusetts native, will take over as CEO for now.

Bowlen, who saved the Broncos from possible bankruptcy in 1984 when he purchased the team from Edgar Kaiser, was the fourth-longest tenured owner in the NFL. Bowlen was influential in shaping the NFL’s television contracts in the 1990s and was considered one of the most influential and respected owners in the league.

“He was always a league guy first,” Kraft said by phone Wednesday morning. “He was a real solid partner, one that I respected and had a lot of fun with. Just a real good guy.”

The Broncos reached six Super Bowls under Bowlen’s leadership, winning two, and sold out every home game under his watch (their sellout streak dates back to 1970).

“I think over the 30 years he’s built an environment up there that I think everyone in the NFL would like to copy,” Kraft said. “He was not someone who drew a lot of attention to himself. He was just a very proud, passionate person.”

Kraft, who came into the NFL in 1994, said he and Bowlen had a competitive but friendly relationship.

“They always had a sign outside the visiting locker room saying, ‘Altitude: 5,473 feet’ or something,” Kraft said. “He always had this little smirk.” “It was competitive but it was clean. He’s one of the few owners that before we played each other, we always had dinner the night before. We had a sense of we both wanted to win badly, but we had that collegial spirit.” 1 Essential Lesson From Pat Bowlen's Leadership Of The Denver Broncos

By Michael Humphrey Forbes.com July 23, 2014

Fans in Denver and across the Mountain West woke this morning to learn the owner of the Broncos has resigned control of the team, because he is battling Alzheimer’s. If you are an avid football fan, you likely know of the man. Under his tenure as owner, Bowlen’s Broncos won more than 300 games, sold out even more, went to six Super Bowls and won two. He guided one of the great players in history, John Elway, into one of the best executives in the game today.

But perhaps it is more impressive that Bowlen is likely less known than owners who’ve guided teams to minuscule fractions of that success. Mark Cuban (two championship appearances, one win), Daniel Snyder (nada), even that perpetually litigious and unbalanced man in Los Angeles (again, nothing) have higher profiles. His success as a leader is filled with nuances, but one rises a mile higher than the rest.

Yes, Bowlen has made some controversial decisions (he is 2 for 4 in heading coaching hires, in my estimation), he made mistakes and he is willing to admit that quickly. He has been a part of a league that needs to seriously rectify its ethical failings regarding its own players’ health and be more thoughtful about the name of a team, among many other dilemmas. The only way to truly do that is to admit when you are wrong.

“And when you’re wrong, you have to understand that and let it go. That’s my responsibility,” Bowlen told Mike Klis last year.

That’s not the lesson, but it is admirable and hopefully contagious.

“When you come in and buy a football team,” he told Klis, ”you don’t really understand the picture until you’re there for a while.” That’s not the lesson either. Bowlen has a drive to win that outweighs ego-driven pettiness—that’s what those two insights tell us about the man. But you can find that in every leadership book. Same with having drive, but Bowlen means it. Back in 2012, when his team made the playoffs, won a game and then lost in the next round, Bowlen wasn’t satisfied: He sent Elway to get Peyton Manning.

“My goal is the same as every season: 16-0. Win the Super Bowl. I’m smart enough to know we’re not going to win it every year. But I always think I can.” Not the lesson.

This is:

The statement announcing Bowlen’s departure had a very familiar tone. Annabel Bowlen wrote (my emphasis):

“As many in the Denver community and around the National Football League have speculated, my husband, Pat, has very bravely and quietly battled Alzheimer’s disease for the last few years. He has elected to keep his condition private because he has strongly believed, and often said, ‘It’s not about me.’”

In that same Klis’ article, Bowlen said of the Broncos (my emphasis), “It’s not my team. I think if you manage your club well, the fans appreciate that. They have a stake in it too. They buy tickets.”

That’s the lesson. Elvis Dumervil 'forever grateful' to

Broncos owner Pat Bowlen

By Jon Meoli The Baltimore Sun July 23, 2014

Ravens linebacker Elvis Dumervil reflected Wednesday on the news that Denver Broncos owner Pat Bowlen — Dumervil’s boss in Denver for seven seasons — was ceding control of the team as he dealt with Alzheimer’s disease.

“He gave me my first start in the NFL, obviously, being the leader there,” Dumervil said. “[He] rewarded me a second contract, so I’ll be forever grateful. He helped impact my life, my family for generations to come.”

Dumervil made three Pro Bowls for Bowlen’s Broncos, and was an All-Pro in 2009, when he set a then-franchise record with 19 sacks. He came to the Ravens after an issue with his contract following the 2012 season, but remembers his time playing in Bowlen’s organization fondly.

“He was a great guy,” Dumervil said. “He always asked about my health, and when I was out for the year [in 2010 with torn pectoral muscle], we talked a bit. He was always great for me, and I was always grateful for that.”

Fans saddened about Pat Bowlen’s health, honored to talk about his greatness

By Timmy Vigil Fox31 Denver July 24, 2014

DENVER — Denver Broncos fans who’ve had so much to celebrate in the history of the team, find nothing to cheer in the news of Pat Bowlen’s departure from the team because of Alzheimer’s.

“The passion of orange and blue is hard to explain. It’s like meeting your wife and falling in love,” says self-professed super fan, Ralph Williams, AKA, Limo Driver.

The passion he has for the Broncos is owed to owner Pat Bowlen, whose leadership made the state swoon with his commitment to win.

“You talk to any Broncos fan, we expect to win, we expect to go to the Super Bowl. If we don’t go to the Super Bowl, we’re like, ‘Hey, what happened?’” says Limo Driver.

But now fans ask what happens to the team going forward, as Bowlen bows out of daily operations because of his progressing illness.

“Makes them forget who they are, what they are about, their loved ones,” says another super fan James Chavez AKA Orange Vader.

He says news of Bowlen’s health is sad.

But he’s happy about the direction of the team–thanks to the 70-year-old’s leadership.

“He knew how to build this team. He knew what was wrong, what was right. He just wanted to get the right pieces into the stadium, into the team, into the coaching staff,” says Orange Vader. They say they’ll always remember how Bowlen helped usher in thrilling back-to- back Super Bowl wins.

And they hope somehow he never forgets what he means to the state.

“I hope that stays with him. I hope he never forgets what that is, and what he was a part of–that he was a part of the history of this and he was the greatest,” says Orange Vader.

“It robs you of so many wonderful memories and being a Broncos fan, we got nothing but memories,” says Limo Driver.

Bowlen’s excellence will be his legacy in Denver

By Sam Cowhick MileHighSports July 23, 2014

In his 30th year as owner Pat Bowlen announced that he will be resigning from his duties as he continues to deal with his onset of Alzheimer’s disease. The move, however saddening, is a reminder that Bowlen has always led by example in even the hardest of situations.

Bowlen truly is a rarity in the world of major sports team ownership. In his thirty years he has avoided controversy and handled disappointments and failures with grace and class. Today is no different. He simply knows when to retire before failure to perform his duties effects the organization he loves so much.

In 1984 Bowlen purchased the Denver Broncos and began to build what is now a world-class franchise worth over $1 billion dollars. Bowlen’s legacy will always be his insistence on greatness and the true belief that every year the Broncos should expect to win the big one. As an owner Bowlen never compromised or accepted mediocrity. Unlike the owners who care more about revenue than winning (look no further than the hometown baseball team) Bowlen pursued an organizations’ number one goal every season with a fervent passion. As the team succeeded and with it revenue increased it was always clear that the money would be reinvested in a winning team.

Over his tenure the Broncos have had only had five losing seasons and have been to six super bowls, winning two. He also became the first NFL owner to compile over 300 victories in 30 seasons. He had made himself into one of the elite owners in not only the NFL, but across all major sports

His stepping down is undoubtedly a sad day and end of an era but in true Bowlen- form he has prepared his organization to continue its path to winning year in and year out. No disrespect to fellow long time owners Jerry Jones and the late Al Davis, but Bowlen never put himself ahead of the team and this final move displays that. Davis and Jones often pursued the limelight and in both cases maybe the owners outstayed their abilities to run their respective teams. Bowlen, however, is stepping aside while he is ahead. Rather than holding onto his stature as CEO of the team and sacrifice the greater good of the Bronco family Bowlen showed that he knows when to call it a career. The Broncos will now be controlled by the Pat Bowlen Trust that was created by its namesake and team president Joe Ellis will now have ‘final-say’ control. Bowlen created the trust years ago with the intention of maintaining his standards of excellence. He has said several times that he is completely unwilling to sell the team and wants it to stay in the Bowlen family. He hopes one day for his children to run the organization.

Today’s news can, however have a silver lining. In a society that all too often pays homage to owners and players posthumously with awards, championships and the like Bowlen will surely be present on what can be a championship run. This season and the subsequent great years that Bowlen has set this organization up for can be a living tribute to a man that made Colorado professional football what it is today. In addition to adding him to the hallowed “Ring of Fame,” the Professional Football Hall of Fame should immediately prepare a bust for Bowlen in Canton. Far too many Broncos remain absent from the Hall but Bowlen is undeniably worthy and should be acknowledged for what has been a truly outstanding career in the NFL.

It is easy to remember the famous quote in San Diego when the team finally captured a championship after being so close so many times.

“This one is for John,” Bowlen proclaimed.

Well if the Broncos didn’t have motivation enough to get it done for a team, a city and a state now it has been taken up a notch. If and when the team hoists its next Lombardi trophy no one in the football world will be mistaken on who it will truly be for. Inside the Manning Passing Academy: The Daily News spends four days with Peyton, Eli, Archie and team at now famous Louisiana camp

By Kevin Armstrong New York Daily News July 19, 2014

THIBODAUX, La. — Ninety-five in the shade down on the banks of Bayou Lafourche and Archie Manning, sire of two Super Bowl champions, looks across the Nicholls State University football field that bears his surname to witness what he’s created.

To his right, middle son Peyton, the five-time Most Valuable Player of the NFL, pushes a group of 12 campers paying $585 to be put through the Manning Passing Academy paces, minding their throwing forms and footwork, critiquing technique. One student, unprompted, yells, “Omaha! Omaha!” and waves his hands before taking a three-step drop to spin a spiral 10 yards to a target. Peyton shakes his head. To his mimics, Manning’s hand jive is jazz.

In the opposite end zone, Florida State’s Jameis Winston, the reigning Heisman Trophy winner, leads 13 beanpole teenagers through Saigon squats, sings “The Hokey Pokey” while stretching and tells his Seminoles to keep their eyes up, to “look at all the pretty girls in the stands.” He is one of 40 college quarterbacks invited to learn from the Mannings and teach aspirants at camp. Winston is also a controversial figure — he was accused of sexual assault by a female FSU student in 2012; although no charges were filed, a federal investigation persists over the school’s handling of the case. Here at the academy, he is a member of the yeomanry. He shags errant throws — chasing one ball up a watchtower — and arranges a garbage can in the back corner to serve as a target for lobs.

“That’s the price we gotta pay because we quarterbacks, baby!” Winston says. “We get all the women, all the love, all the fun. We touch the ball every play. Us and the center. Every damn play. Don’t ya’ll love it?”

The kids do, and so does the tan-faced, white-haired man emerging from the mouth of a tunnel in the cement stands. The unannounced visitor is wearing a Brookline (Mass.) Police baseball cap and aviator sunglasses. Archie, sitting comfortably in his golf cart, reaches for the black walking cane he uses in recovering from recent knee surgery, the scab still visible over the scar on his left knee. He recognizes the face and accompanying voice as the man approaches. It is Robert Kraft, owner of the Patriots, long-time nemesis of Peyton, two-time victim of Eli’s Super Bowl throws, and his son, Jonathan, dressed casually with a white towel around his neck, black sandals on his feet and iPad in hand. Robert flew in the previous night on July 9 from Sun Valley, Idaho, where he attended the Allen & Company Conference — a gathering of the world’s wealthiest businessmen — to observe grandson Harry’s fourth trip to the world’s richest quarterback get- together.

“You’ve created a tremendous franchise,” Kraft says.

“Why thank you,” Archie says.

“It’s a hundred degrees out here and these kids can throw all day, work out all day. They want the purity of the game,” Peyton says. “Glad to do it. Glad to do it.”

Archie offers one lament.

“I can’t get the kids to nap,” Archie says.

Hard to blame them. What Archie started in 1996 as a regional camp in New Orleans for 180 Louisiana quarterbacks on a baseball outfield lined for football has grown into a destination event 60 miles west in a 14,000-person town outsiders regularly mispronounce (it’s Tih-buh-DO).

Archie and sons — Cooper, Peyton, Eli — orchestrate the activities with a staff, divvying up responsibilities while working out 1,200 campers who span the globe, hailing from towns as close as Cleveland, Miss., and far away as Oulu, Finland. An economic impact study found that the camp brings $1.8 million into the surrounding communities, and the alumni list includes Andrew Luck, the quarterback who replaced Peyton in Indianapolis, and Russell Wilson, the Seahawk who beat Peyton in February’s Super Bowl.

It was the place where 49ers coach Jim Harbaugh first caught wind of Colin Kaepernick, and was a brief stop on Johnny Manziel’s 2013 Dehydration Tour as he came, worked out and went missing. Manziel was dismissed for disappearing. Depending on the college message board one peruses, he was either dehydrated and his phone died or he enjoyed a mini-Mardi Gras round trip to New Orleans one night. It was the camp’s first public blip in 19 years, but it was also taken care of swiftly. Peyton’s work ethic remains the business model.

“Now, if you screw up, out the gate you go,” says Buddy Teevens, the Dartmouth head coach who has run the camp’s personnel since its inception. “(Manziel) just didn’t show up and do his work. Where was he? I have no idea. He wasn’t answering phone calls or anything else. I’m responsible for him. I check with his roommate, ‘Where is he?’ Didn’t know. ‘Was he in the room?’ No. I called his mom.” It is a well-oiled operation, wakeup at 6:30 a.m. and lights out at 11 p.m. for campers. The brothers return to their college identities, Peyton steering a golf cart with a label that reads “Vol” on the front while Eli scoots by with “Rebel” on his wheels. Peyton focuses on a million particulars; Eli leads kids into layout catches that land them in mud. The balance is attractive, both to parents and corporations. Disney once expressed interest in purchasing the camp, keeping the name and uprooting it from an area best known for alligators and lightning storms, swamp tours and sugar plantations, to expansive confines in Orlando, Fla., according to Archie. Peyton, forever protective of the brand, put his foot down and Archie agreed. Their staying power was steadiest in a way they knew best, catering to the heart of Cajun country with fundamentals in the last days together before Eli and Peyton depart Dixie for training camps in Englewood, Colo., and East Rutherford.

“We’ve had people through the years who seem to have suggestions about how we ought to change,” Archie says. “We’ve always had a simple saying that came from Peyton. ‘It’s an effin’ football camp.’ That’s kind of our theme.”

Fathers and sons is another. Kraft came for just one session, then set off for a return to Sun Valley. Before he left, though, he observed his grandson, and sat with Archie. Manning called over a 10-year-old throwing on the sideline before Kraft left.

“Someone I want to introduce you to,” Archie says. “This is Archie Manning.”

“Pleasure to meet you,” Kraft replies to the boy.

Little Arch is the son of Archie’s oldest son, Cooper. He wears thick-frame black sports glasses and took orders from his father to throw in front of Kraft. An older tight end runs a wheel route, and Little Arch drops back. He unleashes a 15-yard pass in prime form and the receiver catches it. Kraft’s jaw drops. “Oh, boy,” he says.

* * *

AJ McCarron, just-married husband of a bikini model but quarterback of the national champion Alabama Crimson Tide at the time, left all comforts behind and packed his bedding, pillow, toiletries and football cleats into his truck one Thursday morning in mid-July 2012. He was heading 200 miles west to the camp as one the of the college game’s most accurate passers, and followed David Morris, a quarterback development coach from McCarron’s hometown of Mobile, Ala., by truck. It was in the Crescent City that McCarron got his signals crossed passing the Superdome, and lost Morris at the exit to Interstate 10. An 18-wheeler blocked McCarron’s view, and Morris pulled off the ramp.

“I was like, ‘F---!’” McCarron says. Morris phoned McCarron to offer one more pointer about Manning camp.

“Hey, jackass,” Morris said. “We better not be late.”

McCarron made it in time, and “Mr. Archie,” as McCarron refers to him, takes a shine to punctual pupils. Still, being early is but a part of the whirlwind weekend. Peyton pushes the tempo at all turns. At any given moment, there are between one and 1,200 balls in the air on campus. There are 40 fields dotted by quarterbacks, receivers, running backs and tight ends. No idiot kickers. No linebackers. No helmets. No pads. The spread offense is prevalent, as are zone reads and pistols. The weapon of choice is the arm, complemented by the mind. Snap counts are recited and cadences deepened. The legs are stretched and strengthened, too, emphasis placed on finishing each throw, from release point to follow- through. To get loose, they high step, then crawl on all fours as “Get Out of Your Mind!” blasts from the speakers on the first evening inside Guidry Stadium.

“It’s great,” says Rocco English, the father of a camper. “They can’t even make it to the sideline to puke.”

For 96 hours, Thibodaux plays host to Bikram football in the thick humidity. Bucket hats and sunscreen tubes offer protection from the sun; survival in the pocket is a leading topic of discussion.

On the first afternoon, while the campers check in, Peyton and Eli break down the college counselors. Winston, Oregon’s Marcus Mariota, USC’s Cody Kessler and 37 other Alpha males watch Peyton get down on one knee and feed them bad snaps. He throws over their heads — déjà vu of the opening play in February’s Super Bowl loss — rolls balls on the ground and then orders the players to recover and release.

He screams, “Get out! Get out now!” to wideouts stationed at various points on the turf, yells, “Ya’ll flash when I tell you to flash.” He throws over the top and underneath, insisting on flat routes, no drifts. Intensity trickles down.

“I couldn’t break five seconds in the 40-yard dash if you pushed me out of a window,” says Jeff Hawkins, a camp director. “I’m running faster now than I was as an athlete because Peyton’s telling me to. I’m hearing ‘Omaha’ in the back of my mind.”

Eli, the most successful former camper, loses the low-key front, too. He is animated, shouting similar instructions and throwing deep on the run to the likes of the LSU wide receiving corps and its latest blond-streaked alumnus, Odell Beckham, the Giants’ first-round pick. Eli rolls left, then right, and orders his charges to do the same. It is a humbling breaking-in process for some. Several catch their breath. Winston is the only one wearing a golden chain around his neck, dressed in Seminole garnet and gold. He is accurate, displaying improved touch and increased power generated from his hips and legs in offseason workouts. He makes known the reason for his attendance.

“I’m trying to be like Peyton,” Winston says. “I don’t know about ya’ll.”

The Mannings know the Heisman winner, but there are a number of players who come through without leaving a definitive impression. The selection process is not tied to recruiting rankings, and Kaepernick, even as a quarterback at Nevada-Reno, needed a letter of recommendation from coach Chris Ault to gain access as a counselor. Manziel attended the camp as a high school player, but the Mannings couldn’t recall him before others reminded them he was an attendee. Russell Wilson paid his way as a sophomore in high school, and then ran into Peyton in the Broncos’ locker room while taking a pre-draft visit to Denver in 2012. Manning tried to place the face.

“He said, ‘Have I seen you before somewhere? I think I’ve seen you — I’ve seen you before. Where do I know you?’ ” Wilson says. “I was like, ‘You actually coached me in the Manning Passing Academy.’ I love him to death. He’s a great person first of all, and obviously a great football player.”

Florida quarterback Jeff Driskel experienced a similar situation this year. Archie, a guardian of the college game, cold calls quarterbacks recommended to him and learned that Driskel might be interested “in this little camp we put on down here,” as Archie recalls. Driskel informed him that he had been a camper.

“Oh, yeah, I knew that,” Archie says. “Actually, no, I didn’t.”

Few were more excited to hear Archie’s voice on the other end of the phone than Baylor’s Bryce Petty. He was in line at Torchy’s, a taco joint just off campus in Waco, Tex., when the phone rang with a 504 area code on the screen. He did not recognize the phone number, but picked up anyway. Archie introduced himself; Petty giggled.

“It’s like hearing from your grammar school crush,” Petty says. “I held the phone away from my ear and just said, ‘Oh my God.’ I forgot everything else that he said. That’s probably why I forgot to bring towels and sheets for my bed. So awesome.”

Archie doesn’t ask his boys to do anything until they arrive, but Peyton punches in for duty immediately. During a press conference on the second morning, a representative of Nicholls State stood at the front of the room and acknowledged the 10 years the camp has been on the site. He spoke quickly, awarded the family a plaque of gratitude and declared the occasion “Manning Day.” Twenty college players were sitting in the back of the room, awaiting interviews with reporters, their conversation growing louder. Peyton was perturbed and whispered to media liaison Greg Blackwell. Blackwell requested the quarterbacks quiet down. They did, but a minute later the noise level rose again. Peyton, his face turning red beneath his orange Tennessee visor, slipped out of the camera shot and walked quickly toward the back.

“Ya’ll need to stop,” Peyton said. “Just stop.”

There was complete silence then, but the boys were also able to cut loose each night. Thursday brought them all to The Foundry, a popular sports bar with Manziel highlights, Masahiro Tanaka injury updates and a 7-on-7 football tournament looping endlessly on television screens. Peyton and Eli drained Bud Lights, Peyton holding his bottle in a navy blue Koozie. They caught up with old friends while the college counselors made their way two blocks over to mingle with co-eds afterward at a cash-only dive bar named Rox’s. Security guards hired by the camp — one of them from a SWAT team in Boston — hung back, keeping a watchful eye on the Mannings and the future millionaires at both places. Signs posted by the owner greeted all who entered with a rule.

No Pictures Allowed!!!!

No!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

No pictures!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

No cameras!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

None!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

* * *

Antto Toivio, 14, typically lets the leather fly for the Northern Lights in a 9-on-9 league back home in Oulu, Finland, this time of year, but he was assigned the designation of “Young QB 47” at the Manning Passing Academy last week. It was his second visit, hopping planes with his father, Tuukka, an anesthesiologist, first from their hometown to Helsinki, then to Chicago and finally New Orleans.

In all, they spent 13 hours in the air, another hour by car. They researched the camp following a recommendation from coach Scott Preston, an American living abroad in their town. Stacey Thomas, a strong safety from New Orleans, played in Oulu, too. He directed them to the Mannings’ midsummer camp. Intent on playing football in America, Toivio believed the camp was his best path.

“We’ve kind of gone international,” Peyton says. “Never saw it getting to this point.”

Campers come from far afield, but the roots of the family’s tree run deep in Louisiana soil. Two miles from their historic home in the Garden District of New Orleans, the Mannings first teamed with Teevens, then the Tulane head coach, in the outfield of the baseball stadium. The format was, in part, cribbed from the Bowden family. Peyton attended that camp while in high school, throwing at Samford University in Birmingham, Ala., when Terry Bowden was coach there. Peyton brought the idea back to Archie, and Bobby Bowden, then at Florida State, mentioned during his recruitment of Peyton that it was a guaranteed four days with his sons that Bowden relished. Bowden endorsed the Mannings starting something similar.

Archie, disgusted with the lack of throwing in Louisiana prep leagues and tired of reading box scores where the number of passing attempts totaled six or so per game, acted on the advice, wanting quarterbacks to learn how to organize receivers in the offseason and run routes. Trouble was, he later outgrew Tulane, so he took the camp, with Teevens, his sons and others in tow, to Southeastern Louisiana State in Hammond, La. Things went smoothly until Archie ran out of grass.

“I was busing kids to a softball complex and that drove me crazy,” Archie says. “Kids had to get on a bus and the bus would break down.”

Enter Thibodaux. Archie and the Saints practiced in town during training camp in 1975, and the residents’ warmth stayed with him. He liked the stadium, and then eyed the old sugar cane fields out back. It was a wide-open space, perfect for long routes and plenty of opportunity to grow. He brought his brood into Cajun country, helped finance the transformation of the stadium’s surface to Fieldturf and purchased T-shirts emblazoned with “We Like Sweat” on the back for staff members. There were rooms for out-of-towners in the dormitories and at the Carmel Inn, a converted convent down the road from campus. There was an actual Focus St. and a no-frills feel. Campers came, and the organizers allowed the camp to grow incrementally. They flirted with 1,200 players for some time before settling on that number. The university gave them support, too, marking the fields with lines and affording ample space to teach.

“They are miracle workers with mechanics,” says Edward Dougherty, a border patrol agent from Donna, Tex., whose son, Luis, attended this year for the third time.

In an era of quarterback whisperers and carnival barkers shouting about their sure- shot systems, the Mannings issue no such guarantees of success for those who come to the camp.

While nine quarterbacks slotted to start for their NFL teams this season have made a stop at the academy, Hawkins, minder of the numbers, estimates that 10% of the campers will go on to play college football. The most frequent attendees are eighth- graders; the fewest are rising seniors, a result of natural attrition as players decide their future routes. The camp does not advertise, but welcomes all on a first-come, first-served basis and fills up to capacity by January each year. Campers read all about camp on the website, and applications make their way to the email inbox of Hawkins in Eugene, Ore.

Hawkins moonlights as the logistics man for the camp while working full-time as the director of football operations at Oregon. A room on the second floor of his house doubles as the only official workspace for the camp, but he’s been with the Mannings from the start, having worked under Teevens at Tulane 19 years ago. They are all linked together by the Mannings and their loyalty to Louisiana.

“I don’t eat crawfish or oysters anywhere but here,” Peyton says. “I’m pretty biased. Hard to get those things in any other state.”

The pulse of the camp is best taken from the arms of players such as Jacob Massien, a 15-year-old from Sulfur, Miss., and Will Brown, a 16-year-old from Hot Springs, Ark. Both met the mud on Field 11 last Saturday, diving for balls that Eli aired out, leading them into a sloppy puddle left over from a rainstorm. Both were caked in dirt and matted with burnt grass. Massien punched the ground and it caved a little after he missed his catch. Brown defended a pass thrown by Peyton and caught a deep ball tossed by Eli.

“Once-in-a-lifetime chance for someone my size to catch an Eli Manning pass,” Brown says. “I tried to intercept Peyton, but missed. That would have been my highlight of the week. So close.”

Teevens and staff are tasked with accommodating it all. He sweats the rain each year, knowing the contingency plans required to transfer players to dormitories or classrooms when the fields are unusable and lightning bolts charge the sky. In 2012, it rained so hard overnight that the fields were flooded when he woke up. Ants driven up from the soil dotted the puddles. He called Brandie Toups, an administrator on campus, and had forklifts move cement stanchions in the parking lots. Dumpsters were relocated and cars towed. By the time campers awoke, the parking lots were cleared for drills.

There may come a day when new surfaces will be required. The backfields are tended to and prepared for camp months in advance. In the weeks leading up to the opening session, golfers are restricted from putting on the grass, and no soccer games are played, either. Grounds crew members groom the pasture to the Mannings’ liking, but there is one problem lying beneath it all. The oak trees that offer some shade also have roots that continue to grow, limiting space in the center.

“Shame on them,” Toups says.

* * * Clouds gathered overhead as campers readied to disperse at the close of the academy last week. It was Sunday at 8 a.m., and Mariota, the Heisman hopeful from Oregon, sat in the back pew of the St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Center, next to Sean Mannion, the quarterback for Oregon State and winner of the academy’s accuracy contest. Enemy combatants in their rival schools’ “Civil War” come November, they bowed their heads and raised their hands up high while the priest, wearing green vestments for Ordinary Time in the church calendar, discussed “ever-greater victories.”

Across the street, Archie Manning sat in on a non-denominational service. He invited Petty to offer a testimonial. The Baylor quarterback talked about grace and guilt, conviction and condemnation. He addressed feelings of hitting rock bottom and backing up Robert Griffin III. He noted addressing God before each play when the huddle breaks.

“All right, God, here we go now,” Petty says. “I need a spectacular ball.”

Prayers said, players spread across campus for final 7-on-7 sessions, heaving Hail Marys and taking the Lord’s name in vain. They counted “One Mississippi, two Mississippi, three Mississippi” before rushing the quarterback and then leaving Louisiana. Campers bid the bayou adieu; coaches talked about next year’s 20th reunion.

“We’ll be here,” Archie says.

The beginning of the reunion had kicked off a day before the camp began, Eli and Peyton arriving back home in New Orleans to shoot a new DirecTV commercial and enjoy a family dinner at Mosca’s, an Italian restaurant a half-hour’s drive from the house. Now, there were two daughters for Eli to fly back to and another night in New Orleans for Peyton before heading out to Colorado and his 17th season in the NFL. Having served their father well under the southern sun, they departed Dixie once more.

“There’s no Thanksgiving togetherness for us,” Archie says. “This is goodbye for football season.”

Emotional Day at Dove Valley

By David DeChant DenverBroncos.com July 24, 2014

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. -- Change is never easy, and Wednesday was a day of major change in Broncos history.

There was no getting around the emotion brought on by the announcement that Pat Bowlen would be stepping back from the team's daily operations as he fights Alzheimer's disease.

That sentiment was particularly apparent when Broncos President Joe Ellis and Executive Vice President of Football Operations/General Manager John Elway met the media and talked about the man who has run the Broncos since buying the team in 1984.

"All of us won’t be able to see him every day, which is hard because he made that fun," said Ellis, who represented Bowlen at the owners' meetings in March and now assumes operational responsibility of the club. "He loved this team and he loved everything about what he did and he was really good at it — really, really good at it."

Elway echoed Ellis' sentiment, trying to hold back the emotion.

"What a sad day it is around here," Elway said, visibly choked up with his voice near a whisper. "This place will never be the same."

"It’s going to be very hard to not see him walk through the front doors every day."

Both men spoke with lumps in their throats at times, reflecting just how close they've grown with Bowlen in the last few decades.

Ellis started working for the Broncos in 1983 and has been the team's president since Jan. 5, 2011. Elway joined the Broncos as a player just a year before Bowlen bought the team and played 15 seasons for him. Bowlen hired Elway to his current position when Ellis was named president. Both Ellis and Elway referred to Bowlen as a mentor and a friend.

Elway described the trophy presentation after Super Bowl XXXII -- when Bowlen announced, "This one's for John" and handed him the Lombardi Trophy -- as "the most humbling, thrilled feeling I've ever had in my life." He also credited Bowlen's encouragement as the thing that convinced him to join the team's front office three years ago. "I wouldn’t be anywhere close to where I am today if it wasn’t for Pat Bowlen," Elway said.

Ellis voiced similar feelings, saying he had "just learned everything" from Bowlen over the years.

"Everybody is trying to follow his lead," Ellis said. "I guess the one thing is in a position of such power that he had, he is such a humble and modest and shy guy. He has great humility."

As the team moves forward with heavy hearts, it's clear that Bowlen will remain at the front of people's minds, regardless of how often he can be around Dove Valley.

"There has been an outpouring of support already," Ellis said. "I know it will continue. And we will do right by him and in turn he would tell us you do right by the fans. And you do right by this community and you do right by the National Football League. And that’s what is going to happen."

"When he’s not here, he’ll still be here in soul," Elway said.

Bowlen Set Precedent for Success

By Lauren Guidice DenverBroncos.com July 23, 2014

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. -- Pat Bowlen has always had two goals for the Broncos: to win, and to win the right way.

Despite Wednesday’s announcement that he will be stepping back from the organization to focus on his health, the organization maintains those same priorities.

Adjusting to Bowlen’s absence around the facilities will take time, but the 2014 season looms. Just as Bowlen would want, the team is preparing the same way it usually would, determined to accomplish his objectives.

“It is important to follow out the mandates that Pat put on us every year,” said Broncos President and CEO Joe Ellis. “Listen, everybody -- his family, his children, his brother, myself, John Elway -- we all wish Pat could come through the door and do what he did so well. We are all here for him. But he has left us with a blueprint that is easy to follow.

"We've got to abide by that and do right by it. And we will.”

A sentiment echoed during Wednesday’s press conference was Bowlen’s ability to not micromanage and to allow his employees to learn and grow. Though Bowlen permitted his employees a degree of autonomy, Elway said he “was very interested in knowing what was going on. He wanted to know everything that was going on and was a great listener. But he also had great advice.”

Bowlen's empowerment of employees like Ellis and Elway paved the way for future team successes, even though Bowlen’s role will be limited.

"When I look at Pat and what I’ve learned from him up to this point, (one thing) is his ability to go ahead and hire people and allow them to do their jobs and have the security in oneself to hire the best person,” Elway said. “Give them guidance with his experience that he’s had as a businessman, but also give them the rope to go and be as good as they can possibly be, and that’s what Pat’s done since he’s been here. He gives you the ability, he gives you the resources -- No. 1, to be as good as you can be, and he gives you guidance when he thinks that you need some guidance.” This allows the Broncos staff to continue their work productively and work towards another Super Bowl run.

Head Coach John Fox said when the players saw Bowlen watching practice -- which he did frequently -- they were inspired by his commitment to the team and the sacrifices he made so it would be successful. Fox said Bowlen’s “fingerprint is on everything," and that the culture he created started at the top and will continue to prosper.

During his press conference, Ellis became emotional when speaking about how he will not see him around the facility anymore. The players liked having him around and Bowlen made a point in developing relationships with them, Elway said.

“As a player, you love to see your owner on the field and around, because then you know it means a lot to him,” said Elway, who played for Bowlen 15 seasons and has worked for him the last three. “And that’s why it meant so much to Pat that he was around. So, as a player when you see that, it transcends through the whole organization, the importance of him being there and how important it is to him.

"You feel that as a player, and the fact that he has the same goals that we have, and that’s to win a world championship. If it doesn’t start at the top with the goal of winning a world championship, it’s very difficult to get that done.”

Ellis learned many lessons from Bowlen and aims to carry on Bowlen’s winning legacy. Ellis noted that Bowlen poured all of his resources back into team to ensure that it could be as competitive as possible. Simply put, he wanted to be the best at everything, both on and off the field. Because of this, “everybody knows how they need to conduct themselves moving forward,” Ellis said.

“The mandate is the competitive fire, to be competitive and do the things to continue to win football games,” Elway said. “That’s what he (Bowlen) is, he’s a competitive guy. The thing is to continue with the resources that he gave us, and be smart with the resources, and be mindful of what we’re spending on. That’s, especially on the football side, that’s what he wanted. He wanted a winning football team.”

The days leading up to training camp are typically filled with excitement and anticipation. Dove Valley had a somber atmosphere on Wednesday as Bowlen’s announcement sunk in and his absence was felt.

But the Broncos’ goal is the same, as Bowlen himself said: "Be No. 1 in everything." Of course, that means winning the Super Bowl. It’s Bowlen’s goal and, despite his illness, it has not and will not change.

Ware's Goal: 'Best Defense in the League'

By Andrew Mason DenverBroncos.com July 23, 2014

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. -- On the day DeMarcus Ware signed his contract, he summed up the flurry of defensive signings by describing them as an addition of "brutal nasty" to the unit.

The additions of Ware, T.J. Ward and Aqib Talib, along with the return from injury of Kevin Vickerson, Von Miller, Derek Wolfe, Rahim Moore and Chris Harris Jr., are expected to upgrade the performance of a defense that struggled for long stretches last year before finding its form in the last two regular-season games and the first two weeks of the postseason.

But attitude can only go so far. It's about performance, and Ware expects the final result to be much different than it was last year.

"Night and day," Ware said. "You had guys that were hurt, and have the opportunity to not have any holes in your defense.

"You have good interior defensive linemen, you got good linebackers, two great, phenomenal pass rushers, but also guys that can come in and make plays. When you talk about defenses they always have good cornerback core. So they are really tough back there. They come up and are able to make plays and make tackles on the run.

"So I think the sky is the limit for us."

Yes, that means being as good as the record-breaking offense. Recent history reveals this as a realistic goal. In 2012, the unit was blessed by good health, had Von Miller for a full season with Elvis Dumervil opposite him, and finished No. 2 in the league in yardage per game -- the same rank as the offense that year.

"We are trying to be a force to be reckoned with this year," Ware said. "At the end of the day, we are trying to be [No.] 1 and [No.] 1. The best offense in the league and the best defense in the league.”

The first step to getting there required bolstering a pass rush that saw its sack rate dip last year. Doing so was a top priority of Executive Vice President and General Manager John Elway. "The best pass defense is a pass rush," Elway said.

In 2012, pressure created takeaways. Denver was second in the league in sack rate -- one every 11.75 pass plays -- and that helped the Broncos coax 23 fumbles, of which they recovered eight. Denver also intercepted 16 passes.

Last year, the sack rate dropped to one every 15.95 pass plays. The Broncos forced more turnovers, but the results were less explosive; their touchdowns off defensive takeaways dropped from six in 2012 to one last year.

"You’re always looking to get takeaways," Elway said. "I think with pressure, especially in the passing game, especially with the way we played last year, playing ahead, to be able to get those pass rushes, you’re going to create more turnovers. So that’s what we’d like to do and we’ll see what happens.”

Beginning Thursday, the Broncos will learn how much pressure they can create -- and how far it can take a defense searching for redemption.