The Broncos continued to get praise from Darrent Williams’ friends and family. The latest gesture by the team extended to the family is it will pay for the funeral in its entirety.
The funeral for Williams, shot and killed in downtown Denver, will be held in his hometown of Fort Worth, Texas. In addition to taking care of the services, the Broncos brought in Williams’ family and have arranged lodging and transportation for them until they depart for home. Monday, Williams’ mother, Rosalind, said the Broncos have been “outstanding” in their support.
Williams’ agent, Jeff Griffin, talked to Broncos coach Mike Shanahan shortly after 3 a.m. Monday and has been in constant contact with the team since Williams’ death. He praised owner Pat Bowlen and the entire organization.
“I have gained so much respect for that organization in the past two days,” Griffin said. “I can’t say enough of how classy they have been. You never think of something like this happening, but the Broncos have made things so much easier than they could have been.”
Tuesday, while talking to the media, Shanahan expressed the team’s support for Williams’ mother.
“She knows that anything that she wants, she’ll have,” Shanahan said.
Meanwhile, Shanahan said the team is working on finding a fitting tribute to honor Williams.
The team also will work on some charitable ideas in Williams’ name. Williams had a desire to work with youth in his hometown about the dangers of drugs and violence.
“We’re going to do a number of things,” Shanahan said. “I hate to get into detail about that, but you can rest assured that we’re going to work on Darrent’s dreams and make sure that they are fulfilled.”
Funeral details
Williams’ funeral service will be held at noon Saturday at Great Commission Baptist Church, 7700 McCart Ave. in Fort Worth. It has a seating capacity of 2,300 and will be open to the public. There will be a memorial service for Williams on Friday from 6-8 p.m. at the same church.
Williams’ mother, who along with family members went to her son’s Parker home Tuesday to pack his belongings to be shipped back home, is expected to return home today.
Meanwhile, the Darrent Williams Children’s Fund, benefiting his son and daughter, has been established at U.S. Bank in Denver.
Bad memories
This is the second time Shanahan has had a player die while he was a head coach. Safety Stacey Toran died in an automobile accident during training camp in 1989 when Shanahan was coaching the Los Angeles Raiders.
Signings
The Broncos signed running back Tory Fleming, quarterback Darrell Hackney, defensive end Carlos Hall, linebacker T.J. Hollowell, punter Eddie Johnson, tight end Teyo Johnson, guard Kevin McLamont, tackle Jacob Rogers, linebacker Cameron Vaughn and defensive back Lamont Reid.
