Denver, CO
The Broncos aren't doing anything to end the Chiefs dynasty
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The Chiefs are a dynasty. After winning Super Bowl LVIII in thrilling fashion, with a walk-off touchdown in overtime, Kansas City has put that debate to bed.
They’ve won three Super Bowls in the last five years, including back-to-back titles. They’ve played in six-straight AFC Championship Games, winning four. And they’ve won the AFC West eight consecutive seasons, the longest streak in the history of a division that dates back to 1960.
It’s an unprecedented run. And even though it’s not a popular opinion, it’s unlike anything the Broncos have ever put together.
Sure, the three Super Bowls in four years during the 1980s was great. But John Elway and company never hoisted the Lombardi Trophy.
Yes, the back-to-back titles in the late 1990s were great. But the Chiefs have matched that, gone to another two Super Bowls and won another championship.
And granted, the Peyton Manning era was amazing. But that four-year run only featured two Super Bowl appearances and one parade through the streets of Denver.
Game. Set. Match.
The Chiefs are the best team to ever play in the AFC West. Andy Reid is the best head coach. And Patrick Mahomes is the best quarterback.
There really isn’t any argument against those statements. The Broncos, Chargers, Raiders and Seahawks (back in the day) have no run of success quite like what Kansas City has put together during the last six years.
That’s why every other team in the division should be fed up. They should be sick and tired of watching their rivals get all the glory. They should convulse at another shot of Reid and Mahomes on a postgame podium, Travis Kelce and Taylor Swift embracing on the field, and the Hunt family adding more hardware to their trophy case.
Is that the case in Las Vegas? It’s hard to tell, but who cares what Mark Davis is thinking.
Is that the feeling in Los Angeles? No one knows for sure, but the Spanos family luring Jim Harbaugh away from Michigan offers a strong indication.
Is that the mood in Denver? That’s open for discussion.
Since taking over the team prior to the start of the 2022 season, the Walton-Penner Family Ownership Group certainly has been willing to spend money. They signed Russell Wilson to a contract totaling $242.6 million, the paid Nathaniel Hackett to go away after just 15 games, the inked Sean Payton to a five-year deal worth a reported $80-90 million and they shelled out $235.1 million in contracts during their first foray into free agency.
The riches owners in the NFL have deep pockets. And they’re more than willing to dig into them.
That suggests a commitment. That offers hope that the right mindset exists in Denver.
But will it last? Is that something that Greg Penner is willing to keep doing?
Those are two questions that are hard to answer. But the signs aren’t encouraging.
During his end-of-the-season press conference, George Paton suggested that the Broncos wouldn’t be big spenders in 2024. The Broncos general manager set expectations for the upcoming offseason.
“We won’t be in on the first wave of free agency like we were last year,” Paton said. “You can’t do that every year.”
He’s not wrong. In a salary-capped sport, the spending has to be curtailed at some point. But after one year? That seems a bit premature.
Of course, the Broncos are going to be dealing with salary cap issues. If they decide to part ways with Russell Wilson, they’ll be absorbing $85 million in dead cap from the quarterback’s contract. That’ll tie their hands to a large degree.
But Denver is voluntarily putting themselves in that position. They could choose to pay Wilson to play the next two seasons in Denver, a move that would cost them more in cash during the 2024 and ’25 seasons, but would avoid huge cap hits for a player not on the roster.
Instead, they seemingly are willing to put themselves in salary cap purgatory for two seasons. It’s all but waving the white flag on trying to dethrone the Chiefs this season or next.
And the two people most-responsible for this mess are still employed. They’re still in charge of everything football-related in Denver.
Paton is still the GM, even though he made the trade for Wilson and gave the quarterback a five-year contract extension before he ever played a down in a Broncos uniform. And that’s just the first of his many mistakes. Hackett was another, Randy Gregory makes the list, so too do the contracts given to Courtland Sutton and Tim Patrick.
The Broncos cap issues are Paton’s fault. But he’s still around.
His power has been curtailed a bit, as Sean Payton now has final say in personnel matters. But that might not be a good thing. The head coach seems to be infatuated with anyone who has ever eaten a beignet at Cafe Du Monde. He also refuses to make it work with a quarterback who has played in two Super Bowls and was in the HOV lane to Canton before he got to Denver.
Instead, Payton is going to try to prove what an offensive genius he is by winning with a system quarterback. It’s the same mistake Mike Shanahan made in 1999 with Brian Griese and Gary Kubiak made in 2016 with Trevor Siemian. The head coach thinks his X’s and O’s are more important that the Jimmys and the Joes.
Yet, Penner is letting it all happen. The Broncos owner is allowing Payton and Paton to put the Broncos further and further behind the Chiefs, as evidenced by their woeful Super Bowl odds next season.
Perhaps he’s taking the long view. After all, Denver probably isn’t going to be catching the Chiefs in the next two seasons anyway. Their light years behind the back-to-back champs, so a total rebuild might be a good idea.
But if that’s the plan, why hire Payton? Why bring in a win-now coach with a Super Bowl title on his resume?
It doesn’t add up. In fact, it suggests that there isn’t much of a plan in place.
That’s why Penner’s words ring a little hollow. His comments in early January fail to hit the mark.
“We’re just as impatient as you are to win,” he said to Broncos Country.
Is that true? Are Penner and the rest of the ownership group really as anxious and fed up as the fans who’ve watched the worst stretch of NFL football ever played in the Mile High City?
It doesn’t seem so. Otherwise, he’d be making bold moves to make sure the dynastic run of the Chiefs comes to a close as quickly as possible.
Build around Russ, the only Broncos quarterback to beat Kansas City since Peyton Manning was behind center. Force Payton to make it work with a QB that has won a lot of games in the NFL. Tell Paton that he’s made one too many mistakes to still be in charge.
Do something. Otherwise, Penner is the opposite of impatient. He’s passively watching as his team’s rival runs circles around his franchise.
Denver, CO
Married couple stars on stage at Denver Center for the Performing Arts’ “Dracula, a Comedy of Terrors”
The Denver Center for the Performing Arts is celebrating more than 100 performances of its hit comedy “Dracula, a Comedy of Terrors.” The show, which puts a funny twist on the classic tale of Dracula, is filled with comedy and romance, and that romance can be seen both onstage and off.
“It is a great date night. It is fast, it is fun,” said Marco Alberto Robinson, the actor who portrays Dracula on stage.
“People leave with a smile on their face, it is a good time,” said Adriane Leigh Robinson, an actress who plays multiple characters during the show.
The duo not only finds romance on stage in the production, but off stage, they are already in love.
“We are just best buddies,” Marco Robinson said.
“We are married,” Adriane Robinson said as she laughed.
The duo has lived in Denver for years and has enjoyed helping bring Dracula to life at the Garner Galleria.
“Dracula is a cult classic about a blood thirsty monster. But this is different, because he is not only blood thirsty, he is spicy,” Adriane Robinson said.
The other cast members of the production told CBS News Colorado they are confident both Robinsons are capable of starring on Broadway in New York. However, both said they have found a purpose and belonging in Denver and at the DCPA.
“We have found a super tight and loving community that we don’t ever want to leave,” Adriane Robinson said.
Both have been in many productions at the DCPA, but added Dracula has given them an opportunity to explore a side of their relationship that they’ve never had before.
“It’s the easiest (to be romantic interests on and off stage),” Adriane Robinson said.
“It is super easy. We can come up with something at home and bring it in. It is nice to not be passing ships,” Marco Robinson said.
Both said they have an appreciation for the surrounding arts community in Colorado, and have loved being on the same funny production in Dracula, a Comedy of Terrors.
“We are putting roots down here, and regional theatre is super important. And, the Denver Center is doing some of the best of it,” Marco Robinson said.
Dracula, a Comedy of Terrors, plays at the DCPA through May 10. For more information on tickets, visit their website.
Denver, CO
Traffic, parking and transportation at Burnham Yard are focal points around Denver Broncos stadium plans
As the Denver Broncos design a new stadium for Burnham Yard, one of the most critical elements — with some of the highest potential for backlash from neighbors and the team’s fans — will be the plan for getting people to and from the site.
Questions about parking, traffic management, transit access and accessibility have emerged as major concerns for neighbors of the future stadium during early community meetings in west Denver organized by the city and the team.
“It is probably the No. 1 topic that we’re hearing,” said Troy Halouska, the vice president of the La Alma Lincoln Park Neighborhood Association.
Lindsey Noble, a resident of the neighborhood, said in an interview with The Denver Post that she and her neighbors were “pretty concerned about traffic and parking” from the events the new stadium would host — which the team has said would go well beyond Broncos home games.
“They (the Broncos) are creating these problems, and some of the solutions I have heard have to do with altering our neighborhood or changing streets,” she said. “These aren’t things we want.”
The Broncos are still early in the process of laying out plans for the abandoned rail yard as the team aims to build a stadium by 2031. The team has already released some transportation-related details, including proposed changes to street crossings with the Regional Transportation District’s light rail tracks, potential parking options for events, and plans for connections to existing pedestrian and bike infrastructure.
The team plans to build more than just a stadium, though. Alongside their home field, the Broncos want to create a mixed-use entertainment district that uses the space year-round. Like other modern stadiums, it would have restaurants, open space and, potentially, hotels or apartments outside the venue.
Officials with the Broncos say they have heard the worries from nearby residents about the massive development’s potential impact on their neighborhoods. They say they’re looking for ways to integrate the site into the community — without flooding nearby streets with thousands of cars and people.
Generally, the team plans to address those concerns by designing the site in such a way that eventgoers are guided in through the north and south ends of the site, rather than being routed through the mostly residential neighborhood to the east.
The site itself, once the rail yard is cleared, will be nestled between two rail corridors — freight lines to the west and RTD’s light rail tracks to the east. Entities connected to the Broncos have been buying up properties beyond the banana-shaped rail yard for the stadium and surrounding district.

A bit farther to the west of the site is Interstate 25, and the north and south boundaries are generally West 13th Avenue and West Sixth Avenue. An early conceptual plan the team submitted to the city shows how its designers plan to connect local streets through the site. One new street would connect West Eighth Avenue to Osage Street, for instance, incorporating city plans to lower part of Eighth’s current viaduct.
Josh Brooks, a principal at Sasaki, the architecture firm designing the site’s master plan, said during a community meeting in February that the team plans to design the area so that noise and visual impacts are pushed as far from the residential neighborhood as possible.
“Our intention is to ensure this is an integrated community, a mixed-use development that really serves as an extension of the city and becomes part of the shared memory of the community,” Brooks said.
One of the things that most attracted the team to Burnham Yard was its connectivity with other areas. Located near I-25, Sixth and Eighth avenues, an RTD station, walking paths and planned bike lanes, the site won’t need massive changes to help bring in visitors.
But that doesn’t mean the team won’t have plenty of work to do on that front.

During the February community information meeting at the La Alma Recreation Center, the Broncos conducted a quick survey of attendees to ask what their top concerns were. The most-selected item was “traffic congestion during games/events,” followed closely by “impacts to housing expenses.”
The design for the site will focus on connecting existing roads and pedestrian paths and easing those neighborhood concerns, Brooks said.
The Broncos will work with the city in the coming months to develop a small-area plan, which will set out the design for the expanse surrounding the stadium site. While the stadium itself will be privately financed, the team has said, the city and state could be on the hook for infrastructure improvements nearby.
The city already plans to pay for improvements to two major road connections, the nearby Sixth and Eighth avenue viaducts, as part of bond projects passed by voters last fall.
Train crossings and transit access
One advantage of the Burnham Yard site is that it already has an RTD rail station next to it, making transit access easier. But the 10th and Osage station is accessible only from the east, with Burnham Yard west of the tracks. So it would need to be reconstructed to allow pedestrian access from both directions.
Working together with RTD, the Broncos are proposing changes to several light rail crossings. At 13th Avenue, the team has suggested a bridge for trains to pass over the street, with a place for drivers, cyclists and pedestrians to cross beneath.

At 12th and 9th avenues, team officials are proposing a separated-grade crossing for cyclists and pedestrians to also pass underneath the light rail tracks.
Eleventh, 10th and 8th avenues would have at-grade crossings. Halouska, with the La Alma Lincoln Park Association, said residents would like as few at-grade crossings as possible to prevent collisions or other safety hazards.
Besides concerns about transit crossings, Noble expressed worry that there also might not be enough light rail cars on a game day to transfer everyone who arrives and departs that way.
A spokesperson for RTD said there was no one available to discuss the transit agency’s plans for the area.
“RTD is regularly meeting with the project team and other partners to provide feedback and ask questions about their proposed stadium plans. Specific information about any proposed changes to RTD’s services or operations is not yet available,” RTD’s Pauline Haberman said.
What about parking?
Other concerns about the plan center on where those who drive to the stadium will park.
Halouska said even when his group tries to host meetings about other topics, parking is the concern its leaders hear about the most from the neighborhood.
“The Broncos have said themselves they really want this area to be activated 300 days a year, and so folks in the neighborhood are very concerned about what kind of impact that will have on parking,” he said. “We really need more details from the team and the city.”

Team officials have said they plan to provide the same amount of parking at the new site as Empower Field has — which is roughly 7,000 spots. But instead of a stadium surrounded by surface parking, officials are proposing making use of parking structures and shared parking systems.
Noble said the on-site parking spots could make a big difference in the impact to the neighborhood.
The city could also add resident-only parking permit rules for the surrounding streets, much like a longstanding system in the Jefferson Park neighborhood around Empower Field.
A spokesperson for the Department of Transportation and Infrastructure said the same system is possible for Burnham Yard, but it’s too early to know specifics of how it would work.
“We won’t begin designing anything until we understand how the site will work, where impacts could occur, and there’s a focused conversation on (residential parking permits),” Nancy Kuhn wrote in an email.
Halouska said that could help, but only if the parking permits are regularly enforced.
“Having the permits is a fine idea — though it does cost money to get a permit — but if it’s not enforced, then it’s kind of pointless,” Halouska said.
Bike and pedestrian access
It won’t just be public transportation and cars getting people to events or the new development. The Broncos also plan to build connections to surrounding bike and pedestrian infrastructure, like the South Platte River Trail and the bike lane along 13th Avenue, Brooks said.
There could also be a connection to the proposed 5280 urban trail, which as envisioned by planners would weave through several neighborhoods that include La Alma Lincoln Park, Golden Triangle, Capitol Hill, LoDo and Ballpark. The effort, led by the Downtown Denver Partnership, is not yet fully under construction. About a quarter of the plan is in “next steps development,” according to the DDP.
Noble said she hoped the team would find some ways to encourage people to travel to the stadium without driving.
“Really, I think incentivizing people to ride their bike and take public transportation is the way to go to mitigate the impacts,” she said. “Make it easy. Make it affordable.”
Officials say they will wrap up the community-informed small area plan, which will provide policy guidance for city decision-makers, by the end of this year. It will include resident feedback and ideas about housing, sidewalks, open space and grocery access, among other things.
The Broncos and the city plan to host their next community meeting in May.
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Denver, CO
Denver Catholic community bids farewell to Archbishop Samuel Aquila
On Sunday, a special Mass was held to say goodbye to the archbishop of the Archdiocese of Denver, Samuel J. Aquila.
Aquila was appointed as the diocese’s archbishop in 2012 and submitted his resignation last year as he neared his 75th birthday, in accordance with Canon Law. Pope Leo XIV accepted his resignation in February and appointed his successor, Archbishop-designate James R. Golka.
A Mass of Thanksgiving was held at the Light of the World Catholic Church on Sunday to bid farewell to the man who led the diocese for nearly 14 years and to thank him for his service. Aquila was ordained as a priest in the Archdiocese of Denver in 1976, and this year marks his 50th anniversary as a priest.
As archbishop, Aquila spoke out against abortion and called on officials to find a balance between protecting the United States’ borders and welcoming immigrants.
Aquila says that during his time as archbishop, the diocese has received many blessings and seen significant growth, including an increase in the number of young families.
“I think that the Lord has blessed this archdiocese tremendously, especially since World Youth Day in 1993; things really began to change here. Many new apostolates were born from the visit of Pope John Paul II, of Saint John Paul II. And there is a very deep awareness of how God providentially watches over this archdiocese,” said Aquila. “And so, I am handing off a very blessed archdiocese with many young families and many people who are deeply committed to the gospel.”
He shared a feeling of gratitude and joy for the opportunity to serve the diocese, knowing the faithful, and leading people to Christ. Aquila hopes that his community has found a deeper love of Christ and the sacraments through his service and an understanding of the importance of being missionary disciples.
“Of being those who go out themselves and invite others to encounter Christ and to come to know Jesus Christ. And proclaiming the, what we call the ‘kerygma,’ the basic good news of the gospel, or the joy of the gospel. That in Jesus Christ sin and death have been conquered, and He is the one that is the way to the Father,” Aquila said.
He said he hopes the diocese continues to grow in faith and that he believes Golka will be a good shepherd of that faith.
“The blessing is that my successor is an incredibly good man whose heart is on fire for Jesus Christ,” he shared. “And so, it’s like running a race and handing off the baton and saying, ‘Okay, you run with it.’ And knowing that Archbishop-designate Golka, who will be Archbishop Golka on Wednesday, that he will be one who continues caring for the gospel and making disciples for Christ.”
Golka’s installation as the new archbishop will begin with evening prayers at the CoBank Arena at the National Western Complex on March 24, followed by an Installation Mass the next day. A Mass of Taking Possession of the Cathedral will take place on March 26 at the Cathedral Basilica of the Immaculate Conception.
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