Broncos owners shell out to replace stadium grass again
Nov 16, 2023, 2:41 PM
Photo by Justin Edmonds/Getty Images
For the second straight season, the Denver Broncos have replaced their entire playing surface late into the year.
Broncos Insider for 9News and 104.3 The Fan contributor Mike Klis reported on Thursday that the Walton-Penner Family Ownership Group threw $250,000 down on field repairs for the second half of the Broncos season.
Denver returns home Sunday night after a bye week and a game in Buffalo on Monday. While the Broncos were away from home, team ownership had a new field installed over eight hours of work on Nov. 6.
Klis reported that the field was in good condition at the time of replacement, which included Denver’s preseason, first half and an Air Force Football game. Still, ownership had decided way back in August that it made sense to make a field change this week.
The story says the field is 64,000 square feet of 100% Kentucky Grass from Platteville. It took 13 big rigs to move the new grass into Denver.
Last year the Broncos replaced the field at the cost of $400,000 just before the season’s final game. And Denver is expected to replace the field yet again before next season.
The $625,000 already spent on fields in the past 12 months may look like an accounting error to the Walton-Penner group, who are the richest owners in the NFL. They’ve thrown $100 million into stadium upgrades and another $175 million is earmarked for a new team facility in Dove Valley.
Maybe a future investment will come in some high-tech operation to keep the grass in better shape rather than replacing it altogether. The Milwaukee Brewers have a cannabis-inspired operation under their dome, but even the Arizona Cardinals’ moveable field has turned into failure with the Super Bowl having an embarrassing moment. The best route for now might just be shelling out for player safety and throwing down new carpet periodically.
The Broncos are playing on the new grass for their next two games before embarking on a three-game road trip. All of a sudden with playoff hopes, the team’s new field may have to hold until late January.
