People associated with the National Football League are grieving the loss of longtime Denver Broncos owner Pat Bowlen on Thursday after he passed away due to complications from Alzheimer’s disease.
Bowlen was born on February 18, 1944 into a family that struck it rich in the oil industry. Bowlen would eventually become an attorney with investments of his own, but he came to purchase the Denver Broncos in 1984 together with money from his entire family. Bowlen would serve as CEO for the franchise for the next 30 years, until 2014, when his battle with Alzheimer’s became too much to continue on the job.