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Bowlen, 75, died peacefully at home in Denver
on Thursday night, surrounded by relatives, his family said in a
statement.
He bought the Broncos in 1984 and served as its chief executive
officer and helped guide the team to seven Super Bowl games in
30 years at the helm, winning three of them.
"We are saddened to inform everyone that our beloved husband and
father, Pat Bowlen, passed on to the next chapter of his life
late Thursday night peacefully, surrounded by family. His soul
will live on through the Broncos, the city of Denver and all our
fans" the family statement said.
The family added that "Heaven got a little more orange and blue
tonight," in a nod to the team's colors.
Bowlen was affectionately called "Mr. B".
His philosophy was that "no one cares if the team is worth a
billion dollars or whatever," he once said. "That doesn't
matter. It's more about how successful you are as an
organization and as a team on the field."
He stepped down from the team's day-to-day operations in 2014
because of his illness.
His team said at the time, "We continue to offer our full
support, compassion and respect to ‘Mr. B,’ who has faced
Alzheimer’s disease with such dignity and strength."
The team's president, Joe Ellis, took over the day-to-day
management of the team when Bowlen stepped down.
Bowlen has already been a 2019 Prop Football Hall of Fame
selection. The award will be give posthumously in August.
He is survived by his wife Annabel and seven children.
(Reporting by Rich McKay in Atlanta; Additional reporting by
Keith Coffman in Denver; Editing by Andrew Cawthorne and Frances
Kerry)
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