It didn’t take long for Owen Daniels to go from new guy to mentor. The Broncos tight end hasn’t known anything but a Gary Kubiak offense in his 10 seasons in the NFL. So when he signed a three-year deal with the Broncos in March, he was welcomed by a team — offense and defense — in transition. The two-time Pro Bowler recently spoke with The Denver Post about that transition, lessons learned in the NFL and his new favorite job as a dad.
Q: How has the transition to Denver been?
A: When you go to a place and you’re the new guy, it’s always hard. It’s the “new kid on the first day of school” type of thing. But it wasn’t so hard for me because I had a pretty good background on the offense. Guys come and ask questions — “How does Kube do this? How does he handle OTAs or camp?” That helps to build relationships.
Q: You welcomed your son, Henry, shortly before organized team activities. What’s the best thing about being a dad — ?
A: Just the way he looks at me. My wife lets me feed him his last meal of the day. It’s a little bonding time right before he goes to sleep. That’s my favorite part of the day. Being able to see him — he’s so smiley in the morning. I don’t know how he’s a morning guy, because I’m not and my wife isn’t.
Q: Have you supplied him with a bunch of Owen Daniels Broncos gear?
A: Everyone wants to send you stuff. He’s got a Broncos jersey with “Hank” on the back of it, No. 81. Broncos shirts, blankets, onesies, all that stuff. He’s got a few things with his dad’s name on it, which is awesome to see. He has no idea what’s going on, but it’s fun to see.
Q: Was it difficult leaving him and your wife for OTAs?
A: I got to be with him for about a month, and then they stayed in Houston when I started camp and they didn’t come back up to Denver until the third preseason game. So it was another four or five weeks before I saw him again. Half his life! He had changed so much. I got to see some of it because we would FaceTime every day, but it’s different.
Q. What do you do to unwind after games or practices?
A: Well, it’s changed. Now I just go and hang out with my son. He can’t do a lot, but every day he’s standing up a little bit. Now all he wants to do is sit up. He grabs my fingers and tries to do a crunch and sit up.
Q: Is fatherhood what you expected it would be?
A: It’s more. I had friends I played with who were dads, and they were always like, “It’ll change your life in all these different ways when you have a kid.” As the younger guy, I was like, “Yeah, OK, that sounds cool. I’m sure I’ll be excited when it comes time to be a dad.” But it really changes everything. Now you have somebody who’s totally dependent on you and all you want to do is make sure they’re OK and happy all the time, especially now. It’s been awesome just to watch that development of something that you made. Right from the get-go, I loved him so much and you can’t believe how much you love him. I’ve never felt that before. I love my wife and she loves me, but this is different. It’s seriously the coolest thing ever.
Nicki Jhabvala: njhabvala@denverpost.com or @NickiJhabvala
About Daniels
Born: Nov. 9, 1982, in Naperville, Ill.
Height: 6-foot-3
Weight: 245 pounds
College: Wisconsin
NFL experience: 10th year
Previous stops: Houston (2006-13), Baltimore (2014)
Pro Bowls: 2 (2008, 2012)
