The Denver Broncos are expected to hit the market this offseason, and the people currently running the team might not have much say on who becomes the next owner.
The Pat Bowlen Trust — Joe Ellis, Rich Slivka and Mark Kelly — “have a fiduciary duty to the beneficiaries to get the highest possible price, pending NFL approval,” according to KUSA-TV’s Mike Klis.
The trust has been running the team since Bowlen stepped down to battle Alzheimer’s in 2014, five years before his death. The trust is now expected to have an auction-style sale to award the team to the highest bidder.
Such a sale would be good news for Bowlen’s beneficiaries — his seven children (who each own 11.14%) and his brother John (22%). It might not necessarily put the team in the best possible hands, though.
But as Klis noted, the league’s 31 ownership groups would have to approve of Denver’s new owner, so there is a possible scenario in which the highest bidder could fail to buy the team if NFL owners do not approve.
For now, the Broncos remain focused on hiring a new coach. After that, they will make an announcement regarding the ownership situation.
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