3 biggest winners from Denver Broncos offseason so far
By Jack Ramsey
2) The Walton-Penner Ownership Group
The Walton-Penners are some of the richest people on the planet, let alone the country, and are now entering their second year at the helm of a new venture: football. However, the Broncos have not taken the approach of "Save Money: Live Better." The Broncos went all in on free agency in 2023 and handed out some of the largest deals in club history.
The team signed three free agents to deals with an Average Annual Value (AAV) of $10 million or more and signed now head coach Sean Payton to a deal with an AAV of $17 million a year. On top of that, the team is hell-bent on making new uniforms, upgrading the stadium, and just improving the fan experience altogether. Ultimately, the Walton-Penner ownership group has shown that they are in tune with what the fans want, and that can buy you goodwill for a long time.
Another positive for ownership this off-season has been that they've seemed to have found stability. George Paton is entering his third season as Broncos GM, Sean Payton has a five-year contract, and the Broncos will have the same starting quarterback in consecutive years for the first time since Trevor Siemian in 2016 and 2017. Ultimately, the Broncos are in a much better spot now than they were six months ago. Will this lead to immediate success and a broken playoff drought? Only time will tell. However, Broncos ownership has seemingly steadied the once deadly waters, and that is more than any other Broncos leadership group can say over the last seven or eight years.