The man in the gray flannel suit would stick out like a glum bore in today’s NFL.
Nowadays, team colors are the least you don. And diehards dress from top to toe in everything from team caps, face paint, sweaters, earrings, wristbands, sweatpants and (my personal favorite) replica jerseys, which can bear the name of the fan, the name of the fan’s favorite player or the name of the franchise’s savior (e.g. ELWAY, rhymes with “Yahweh”).
Merchandise is big business for the league. On NFLshop.com, “The Official Shop of the NFL,” you can find anything from a 2003 San Diego Chargers media guide for 97 cents to a 20-inch-by-24-inch mounted photograph of the celebration at Ford Field immediately following Super Bowl XL with “no less than 25 signatures” for just under $3,000. The latter, as of Monday, was the website’s fifth most popular item.
Folks who routinely wear their Broncos fanaticism on their sleeves and elsewhere might want to drop by Invesco Field at Mile High this weekend. On Saturday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., the Denver Broncos Team Store conducts its fifth annual sale.
Located on the south side of the stadium between Gates 9 and 10, the Team Store is open year-round and on game days, offering officially licensed merchandise. For one weekend each year, however, the team clears some storage at Dove Valley and ships its used and new sideline, practice and game apparel for sale to the general public.
“They give me a truckload of stuff,” said Broncos retail operations manager Tim Kellond. “This (weekend) is the only time I put it out. I take if off the floor after the sale.”
For two days and for “less-than-half of full retail, some of it much lower,” said Kellond, a buffet table of merchandise will be rolled out to appeal to the fan with a taste for the authentic. Items are to include travel suits, jackets, sweatshirts, sweater vests, practice shorts, mock T’s, polo shirts and, of course, the highly coveted practice jerseys.
“They want grass stains,” said Kellond of the popularity of practice jerseys. “And if it has blood stains, even better.”
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| Post / Bryan Boyle |
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This photo is amateurish. The cleats, however, are professional. What’s it like to walk a mile high in No. 82’s shoes? Visit the Broncos Team Store this weekend and find out. |
It’s the merchandise with a history that really appeals to the gearheads, said Kellond. Any practice, sideline or game apparel bearing a name and/or number is a smash — even if that history is a bit nebulous.
Take a used pair of cleats marked with the No. 82. Might they’ve belonged to Denver tight end Stephen Alexander? More than likely, since most of the goods are less than two years old.
And while used gear is treasured, there’s also a lot of gear that was intended for use, yet never quite got it (translation: new). And as you might expect, a lot of the stuff comes in bigger sizes — “football-player sizes”, said Kellond — such as 2XL, 3XL and 4XL. So if there’s a special big-and-tall someone in your life, this is a chance to pick up gear in sizes that the Team Store does not typically stock.
The only thing you won’t find: game jerseys. You might, however, find a crowd.
Kellond said he’s always seen a line awaiting the Saturday opening at 9 a.m. However, an excellent selection generally holds out until 11 a.m.
Note: Happy Cinco de Mayo! Remember that the festivities in Denver will limit access to Federal Boulevard this weekend. Get to the stadium from its east side via Interstate 25: 23rd Avenue, Exit 211.
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| Post / Bryan Boyle |
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The Broncos Team Store is located on the south side of Invesco Field at Mile High. The store is open year-round — 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Saturday. However, the authentic practice, sideline and game apparel is only available once a year. This year’s sale takes place Saturday (9 a.m. to 5 p.m.) and Sunday (10 a.m. to 2 p.m.). |
An online exclusive that runs each Friday, examines the memorable, less visible and lighthearted aspects of Colorado’s sports landscape. DenverPost.com sports producer Bryan Boyle can be reached at bboyle@denverpost.com.
From the columns
“Cutler is a very smart man. You play quarterback at a tough academic school like Vanderbilt, you have an extraordinary brain. Little excites Shanahan more in a football player than his intelligence.”
From the mailbags
“There have been some cases in which players have backed out of visits this offseason: Jamal Lewis, Mike McMahon and Joey Harrington. All are unique situations. Lewis was offered more money to stay in Baltimore; McMahon went with his former coach … and Harrington wants to play in Miami because he’ll be the starter to open the season.”
From the message boards
“If leleie wants out of denver so bad why dont we do just that and get a solid defensive linemen for him, make it like a portis, baily thing. Find someone who needs offense and get use a sack guy. ” — denverfan84
From the online exclusives
Last weekend’s NFL draft saw Vanderbilt quarterback Jay Cutler, right, make his way to Denver as the 11th overall selection. To review the 2006 draft, visit our draft center, which includes a report card on each team’s performance.
A look back
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| Post / John Leyba |
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meet Sunday at Broncos headquarters. Cutler, a quarterback and the 11th pick in the NFL draft, passed for 8,697 yards and 59 touchdowns in his college career. Scheffler, a tight end, was the draft’s 61st selection. |
