After seven years of trust control, the countdown to new Broncos stewardship is officially under way

Joe Ellis does not know the exact date it will happen.

But he knows that at some point in the next 12 months, prior to the kickoff of the 2022 season, the Broncos will have someone new atop the organizational chart.

“We’ll have a transition. Yours truly won’t be the controlling owner by sometime in the spring or the early summer,” Ellis said.

“I can’t put an exact timeline on it, but believe me, we need to get it resolved.”

It was seven years ago at the Broncos’ annual pre-training camp media barbecue that Ellis, John Elway and John Fox spoke with anguish about Pat Bowlen ceding day-to-day control over the Broncos because of Alzheimer’s disease. Hours before that event, the news broke, leading to the Pat Bowlen Trust officially assuming the reins.

Seven years and four days later, Ellis put an end point — without an exact date — on this interregnum in Broncos history.

The recent dismissal of the lawsuit brought by Beth Bowlen Wallace, Amie Klemmer and Pat Bowlen’s brother, Bill Bowlen to challenge the validity of the Pat Bowlen Trust allowed this process to begin. The trial for that suit had been scheduled to begin in Arapahoe County District Court on July 12.

“The NFL wasn’t a party to this. This was between some beneficiaries and the trustees,” Ellis said. “That’s as much as I can say on that.”

Still, it removed the primary obstacle that held up a potential transition. There remain two more matters.

First, there a lawsuit against the estate of Edgar Kaiser to remove the right of first refusal on an ownership transition from the heirs of the former Broncos owner, who sold the club to Pat Bowlen in 1984 and died in 2012. That case is scheduled for its hearing in September in Arapahoe County.

And then, there is the Broncos’ season. Pat Bowlen wouldn’t have wanted the potential transfer of the team to overshadow a campaign, and through a series of meetings and phone calls with NFL commissioner Roger Goodell and the league’s finance committee, Ellis received approval to execute a transition in the 2022 offseason — and not before.

“We’re going to get through this season,” Ellis said. “Our goal is to focus on that, have a good year and hopefully be competitive and be around for the postseason tournament once that begins.”

When the season ends, you will certainly hear much more.

And there are two primary possible paths.

Within the next year, the Broncos will either be sold or see their day-to-day control transfer to senior vice president Brittany Bowlen, who rejoined the organization during the 2019 season and spearheaded the Broncos’ COVID-19 and its successful execution.

Since December 2019, Ellis said that if this happens, the only managing partner would be Brittany Bowlen. Her ascension would require the approval of all of her siblings.

The dismissal of the lawsuit challenging the trust does not mean Bowlen’s children have gotten in line behind Brittany Bowlen.

There still needs to be — in some form — consent from every family member for that to happen,” Ellis said. “That can come in different ways, but I don’t want to elaborate on that because those are discussions we’re having privately with beneficiaries.”

If she becomes the Broncos’ CEO and has day-to-day control of the team, the Pat Bowlen Trust would still technically own the team. Brittany Bowlen would be team president, CEO or both.

The trust could own the team indefinitely in this arrangement. But it is not as simple as a rubber stamp. A change to the rules regarding trusts — or a waiver — would be necessary for Brittany Bowlen to manage the day-to-day operations while the trust retains the team.

“The league allows what’s known as … irrevocable family trusts to own teams,” Ellis said. “But right now, the rule requires that the sole trustee also be the controlling owner of that team.

“So … if Brittany were to succeed and become the next controlling owner, we would have to go to the league in some form and request a waiver on that requirement that the league puts. Because I don’t think her being the sole trustee is realistic.

“I probably said more than I should, but that’s just a fact.”

So, for Brittany Bowlen to become the owner, a family that just came to the brink of a lawsuit being heard in court would have to unanimously agree to her becoming the managing partner, and the league would need to give the Broncos a waiver or change its guidelines.

It is possible — but the hurdles are obvious.

Then, there is the potential of a sale — which is “always possible,” Ellis noted.

The Broncos were recently valued by Forbes at $3.2 billion — some $850 million more than the highest sale price of an American sports franchise, which was the $2.35 billion price tag for the NBA’s Brooklyn Nets in 2019. The potential revenue streams created by legalized gambling could push the Broncos’ potential market value to $4 billion or more.

So, the team is sold, or Brittany Bowlen has the reins by this time next year.

In the meantime, the Broncos will try to make Ellis’ last rodeo at the Broncos’ helm a great one.

“I would like to be able to stand up in front of the group here in person and talk about a good season. I’ve come before you for the last several training camps spewing optimism,” he said, then noting that numbers from 5-11 to 7-9 result, representing the range of Broncos records since 2017.

A moment later, Ellis laid down the gauntlet.

“We’ve got to win. We just have to win. It’s kind of enough already for me personally, just watching it. I’ve been here for a lot of years when we had some success, and to have it carry on in the other direction for as long as it has, it’s tough for everybody. I just want to see us turn the corner and be successful. We’ve got to really do that now.”

Eventually, the Broncos’ ownership will have a transition date.

For now, the only date that matters is having one in the playoffs for the first time since Super Bowl 50.

“That’s where our focus is,” Ellis said. “Until the season’s over, you’re not going to hear a whole lot about the future of ownership of the team.”