The document was dated Sept. 23, 1998, and it contained, at least in retrospect, John Elway's golden ticket to a lifetime fortune.
The deal: Denver Broncos owner Pat Bowlen would give Elway the right to buy 10 percent of the Broncos for $15 million. Bowlen would also give him the option to buy another 10 percent of the franchise by forgoing the deferred salary Bowlen owed him on the condition Elway would become a special assistant to Bowlen, which would eventually lead to a COO job. That total deferred salary? About $21 million.
But there was even more that made the deal a no-lose proposition.