DENVER — Hall of Famer Gary Zimmerman realized Pat Bowlen wasn't your typical, meddlesome NFL owner his first Thanksgiving in Denver when he found a sign-up sheet for a turkey, surely a prank on the rookies and other newcomers like himself.
What the heck, he figured he'd play along, so he scribbled his name.
"Then I come into the locker room," Zimmerman recounted, "and there's Pat sticking turkeys into our lockers."
That was Pat Bowlen.
Chum.
Confidante.
Competitor.
A billionaire businessman whose family made its fortune in oil, gas and real estate, Bowlen just wanted to be one of the guys.