ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — Greg Penner held his first-ever training camp opening press conference Wednesday.
Remember, the $4.65 billion purchase of the Broncos by Penner, his wife Carrie Walton Penner, his father-in-law Rob Walton and the rest of the ownership group wasn’t formally approved until August 9 of last year, or two weeks after Camp Cupcake began at Dove Valley.
That makes 2023 the first full training camp for Penner, who personally put up 30 percent of the purchase price (and with his wife Carrie account for 60 percent) and immediately was put in charge as the Broncos’ CEO.
“My view is legacy and history are incredibly important,’’ Penner said. “And we want to honor that. But at the same time one of my pet peeves – I remember my first meeting at Walmart when I took over as chairman and I was explaining some of my pet peeves. And one was, please don’t ever say the words: ‘‘That’s the way we’ve always done it’’ as rational for something.
“I want to honor legacy, honor history here but be willing to change when it’s necessary.”
With smart statement like that, may Penner’s camp-opening presser become the start of a tradition.
It was hardly an uneventful baptism for Penner, his wife and fellow owner Carrie Walton Penner and controlling owner Rob Walton in year one. The team invested heavily, in both player and draft capitol, not to mention financial compensation, in quarterback Russell Wilson. And he and the rest of the team foundered to a 5-12 record.
Christmas Day brought so much chaos and embarrassment, Penner had to fire the head coach he didn’t hire, Nathaniel Hackett, with two games remaining in Hackett’s one and only season. Penner then led a coaching searching committee that also included Carrie Walton Penner and owner Condoleezza Rice in the hiring of Sean Payton.
“One expectation is year 2 will be a little smoother than the first year,’’ Penner said. “It was a great year (in some respects); we learned a lot. Of course, there’s always going to be some surprises. Our expectations for this year are to set really high expectations. Work hard every day to get better. A good product on the field, something that our fans can be proud of.”
He answered three questions about the first head coach he hired. The most interestingly stated was how had he, as the boss, had accepted a coach who is old-school, even cantankerous.
“I mean, I think it’s great he’s got strong convictions and views and it comes from years of experience,’’ Penner said. “He’s got a lot of emotion and cares passionately about this team and what we’re building. His heart’s in the right place and his intentions are right. He started with, 'We’re going to raise the bar.' And I think that’s what we needed with this team and this organization.’’
Another question was about how, as owner, Penner reconciled a coach who shut down the media from speaking to significant free-agent player acquisitions and coaching coordinator hires with the fact the Broncos are foremost a team that belongs to the community, a fan base that had largely turned its attention during the offseason to the Denver Nuggets run at an NBA title a year after the Colorado Avalanche won the Stanley Cup.
Penner, tough, supported the low-key approach his coach took this offseason.
“I think the season that we just had and we’re coming off of it was an important reset for the team with a lot of new faces,’’ Penner said. “What happened last season it was a good way for us to start and be totally focused on football. It’s a balance. It is a community asset and our fans care a lot. At the end of the day what they care about most is winning. So if there’s something we can do we think can help us best prepare to do that in a better way we will make that decision.”
SUGGESTED VIDEOS: Sports