Antonopulos spent 45 years with the Denver Broncos and was the athletic trainer to over 1,500 NFL players. Listen, I really appreciate you calling me. Antonopulos, 72, started working for the Broncos on St. Patricks Day 1976 as an assistant trainer, was promoted to director of rehabilitation in 80, to head athletic trainer in 81 and was director of sports medicine since 2016. Ill see you in the morning. And that morning, we went in and he looked at me, and we just lost it. Antonopulos and his wife, Susan, have a blended family of five kids and seven grandkids and will split their time between homes in Limon., and Tucson, Ariz., and driving their RV to visit family. If they are working in an NFL medical facility it can be even more. An interesting couple days and we had a great time.. Less than a decade after winning the Super Bowl MVP he had left knee replacement surgery. NFL footage NFL Productions LLC. He treated 983 players who've appeared in at least one playoff and regular-season game for the Denver Broncos. In all those years, I never tried to figure out how many hours I worked.. Counting players on training camp roster, Antonopulos treated more than 1,500 players. The weather was awful. Ill always be a Bronco.. He got $26.4 million without playing a down for the Colts last year 32 percent more than his first-year salary with the Broncos. In announcing the retirement of the man everyone called Greek, the Broncos said he treated 980 different players in the regular season and playoffs. We sincerely thank his wife Susan and the entire Antonopulos family for sharing Greek with us for so many years.". Steve Antonopulos will go down as one of the best athletic trainers in the history of the NFL. The Denver Broncos hired Steve Antonopulos as their assistant trainer in 1976. Adhesive bandages, electrodes, ice bags, and kinesiology tape. At the moment it is week-by-week. @Grindin_59 never saw this happening: https://t.co/62EHR6aweP pic.twitter.com/2ns3HQOWc3. Professional football players endure incessant chronic pain in the playing days and beyond. In the playoffs after the 1986 season, the Broncos traveled to Cleveland to win the AFC championship game in overtime, highlighted by The Drive to end regulation. Broncos head trainer Steve Antonopulos, who is in his 40th season with the team, was presented with a painting created by noted artist Gabe Richesson. Antonopulos called the honor breathtaking.. Vince Garcia. Please logout and login again. The Broncos will have a new person as the head of their training staff for the first time in a long time. One moment they move with extraordinary grace, quickness, and power. I dont have an exact set deadline on when Im coming back. Your login session has expired. He told me after the fact he was going to take a half-hour (for the interview) and be on his way, Antonopulos said. Is hard reset only way to salvage Jets QB dilemma? Denver Broncos trainer Steve Greek Antonopulos has retired after 45 years with the franchise, the team announced Monday. I thought I would be (at Fort Hays) my whole career, Antonopulos said. Coach Gary Kubiaks unflappable reaction to the season-ending knee injury of starting defensive end Vance Walker on Tuesday was based on his confidence of the Denver Broncos reserve depth at the position. Broncos trainer Steve Greek Antonopulos, Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window), Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window), Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window), Get to know all 17 Denver mayor candidates , Broncos trainer Steve Greek Antonopulos retires after 45 seasons with franchise, As Broncos wrap up stay at NFL Combine, busy offseason of change churns toward free agency, draft, Broncos check in No. The Broncos will honor Antonopulos at a home game this season and the team will rename their training room after the longtime trainer. Running back could be a sneaky priority need for the Denver Broncos. When I committed to come back for this past season, I told John [Elway], This is it. Antonopulos joined the Broncos as assistant athletic trainer in 1976 and retired in 2021 as the teams director of sports medicine. Here are those results. I love the challenges that are presented each day. Learn how your comment data is processed. During the season, Antonopulos would often arrive at the facility around 4 a.m. and stay as late as required. Antonopulos, 72, whom most everyone with the team and in the league knows simply as "Greek," has been with the Broncos since 1976. An interesting couple days and we had a great time.. Steve Antonopulos, known as "Greek," has retired from his position as athletic trainer for the Denver Broncos after 45 years with the team. The worst locker room in the NFL to a point where we had to tape our athletes in the bathroom if you could imagine that, the locker room was so small. There is no verbal banter of windy platitudes to stoke quixotic fantasies of either management or players. It didnt matter if they were a Hall of Famer or an undrafted rookiehis standard never changed. Broncos trainer Steve "Greek" Antonopulos retires after 45 seasons with franchise - The Denver Post Sports NFL Denver Broncos News News Based on facts, either observed and verified directly by. * 21+ (19+ CA-ONT) (18+ NH/WY). After the 1980 season, he was elevated to head trainer and split his old salary in half to hire two assistants. He served as President of PFATS from 2003 to 2008. We certainly wouldnt have gone to Cheers had we known it would take that long. We just really hit it off and it was an opportunity that I had always dreamed about.. As one of six female athletic trainers in the @NFL, Allison Miner is living her dream. Broncos president/CEO Joe Ellis had this to say about Antonopulos during a phone interview with the Denver Post. It was pretty much a no-brainer when somebody puts in that amount of time, Ellis said. He has been recognized by the Associated Press Sports Editors seven times for his work. Greeks success there was evident as TD would go on to dominate the second half and lead Denver to its first Super Bowl championship. As the only person in the history of the Broncos to be part of all eight Super Bowls, Greek made a profound impact on this organization. If you dont have passion, you are in the wrong field. Antonopulos joined the Broncos as an assistant trainer in 1976, became head athletic trainer in 1981 and was promoted to the role of director of sports medicine in 2016. Trainer Antonopulos, a Broncos' 'fixture,' retires, The future of the NFL combine: Is there really a chance it could end forever? Antonopulos, 72, whom most everyone with the team and in the league knows simply as "Greek," has been with the Broncos since 1976. He closed the door and he went nuts again. Denver will also honor Steve Antonopulos at one of their home games during the 2021 season. We went a day early and went to see the Celtics play the Bulls. On August 3, the Broncos organization came together to celebrate 40 years of service by Greek. Steve Antonopulos gave the Denver Broncos 45 incredible years as their athletic trainer, having trained the likes of Peyton Manning and Shannon Sharpe, among others. The Drive was so special. "Steve Antonopulos is what the Denver Broncos are all about," John Elway aptly summed up on the Broncos' website. He has the respect of the players that he has cared for over the years, and that is the reason many of them will call to ask his advice even after they have left the organization. According to the organization, Antonopulos' 45-year tenure is. Steve Antonopulos, a.k.a. Probably the most loyal employee the team has had and will ever have, Broncos president/CEO Joe Ellis said in a phone interview. Watch the Broncos tribute video to Greek, especially Gary Kubiaks words on how much Greek personally means to him: Steve 'Greek' Antonopulos celebrates 40 years of service with the Denver Broncos https://t.co/whCCXn6cFk. His career is still going as the team's director of sports medicine. Visit NFL.com's transaction hub for a daily breakdown. And then Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City has always been one of my favorites. The first groups have completed their weigh-ins, measurements, and drills. Greek has four assistants and many intern athletic trainers. By Tim Lynch @TimLynch1978 Jun 7, 2021, 8:50am MDT Share this story. A typical day for me starts at 4 a.m. Since he started setting up the training room, the Broncos have been to the playoffs 22 times. For me, Ill always remember Antonopulos for the clips he dominated from Super Bowl 32 when Terrell Davis went down with a migraine in the second quarter. The Denver Broncos head trainer Steve Greek Antonopulos has retired from the NFL after 45 years with the team. The following browsers are supported: Chrome, Edge (v80 and later), Firefox and Safari. I woke him up. Awesome was Antonopulos longevity in the often-unstable world of the NFL. https://broncoswire.usatoday.com/2021/06/08/denver-broncos-news-steve-greek-antonopulos-retires-as-trainer/, 17 Broncos players set to become unrestricted free agents, 5 players Broncos might consider trading this offseason, 8 players Broncos should let walk during NFL free agency, 5 Broncos players who could become cap casualties this offseason, Broncos want to re-sign free agent LB Alex Singleton, Every time the Broncos have used a franchise tag in the past, Your California Privacy Rights/Privacy Policy. Interior linebackers Brandon Marshall and Danny Trevathan had uncertain futures going into the 2015 season. Tedious repetitions of arm pulls and leg lifts. Antonopulos treated 983 players who appeared in at least one regular season/playoff game for the Broncos. I work for a great organization that cares about people. The team announced the long-time athletic trainer's retirement on Monday. From there, we went to Cheers bar and ran into some Denver people and had a couple cold ones. During his 45-year career with the Broncos, Steve Antonopulos treated more than 1,500 players. My wife deserves this and we need to move on, Antonopulos said in a phone interview Sunday with The Denver Post. How did Antonopulos survive so many regime changes? Allen called me the first week of July. From there, we went to Cheers bar and ran into some Denver people and had a couple cold ones. Like Antonopulos, Garcia got his bachelors degree from Northern Colorado. Antonopulos treated 983 players who appeared in at least one regular season/playoff game for the Broncos. Be the first one to comment on this story. Steve Antonopulos is retiring from the Denver Broncos after 45 years with the team. Greek is ever present when scary injuries occur, such as the incident with defensive end Derek Wolfe in the preseason game against the Seattle Seahawks at CenturyLink Field on August 17, 2013. Antonopulos became head trainer in 1979 making him what is believed to be the longest-tenured trainer in NFL history. Broncos president Joe Ellis saidthis to Daniel Petty of the Denver Post about the announcement of owner Pat Bowlens retirement due to Alzheimers in 2014: The night before, I thought of people who were so close to him in the organization and needed to know before the announcement came out the next day. Greek was the recipient of the2011 Fain-Cain Memorial Award at the NFL Physicians Society Scientific Annual Meeting. All other NFL-related trademarks are trademarks of the National Football League. From Left to Right: Dustin Little, Josh Hartman, Steve Antonopulos, Michael Sundeen, and Billy-Joe Voltaire. Five hours later, he was driving me 80 miles an hour down I-25 so I could get to the basketball game that night. If youre doing something you love, you dont watch the clock or think about it, he said. In addition to praising fifth-year veteran Jarek Crick, Kubiak also said that the team expectsa lot of Adam Gotsis, who is less than ten months away from tearing his anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in his left knee. It was embarrassing, the whole concept. His salary is around $10 million and his main source of income is from his career as a business executive. You must be logged in to leave a comment. And he played the whole game. Athletic trainers have one of the more important jobs on a professional sports team, especially in the NFL. What a run. (Kicker) Jim Turner caught a (25-yard) touchdown pass on a fake field goal (from holder Norris Weese) and (linebacker) Tom Jackson went over and gave the bird to (coach) John Madden. In fact over his NFL career Elway ran for3,407 yards and 33 touchdowns. > Top stories curated daily just for you! Discussing his knee rehabilitation, Gotsis at the time said. With unmatched dedication and loyalty to the Broncos, Greek became a trusted confidant for so many coaches, staff members and especially Pat Bowlen. That was a tremendous victory in Broncos history. Over that time, Antonopulos worked all eight Super Bowls that the Broncos have appeared in. (Coach) Dan Reeves made the decision to have him drive to San Diego for the game. Gambling problem? His Bronco days started in 1976. The longest-tenured employee in Denver Broncos history is hanging them up. I loved the job, loved the place and there would be only one position I would leave there for the Denver Broncos.. Few peoplenoticed that Smyth also tweeted this on the first day of the NFL draft: https://broncoswire.usatoday.com/2016/08/17/steve-greek-antonopulos-is-the-broncos-12th-man/, Greek is nothing short of a consummate professional, reconstructive techniques were not available for Elway, 17 Broncos players set to become unrestricted free agents, 5 players Broncos might consider trading this offseason, 8 players Broncos should let walk during NFL free agency, 5 Broncos players who could become cap casualties this offseason, Broncos want to re-sign free agent LB Alex Singleton, Every time the Broncos have used a franchise tag in the past, Your California Privacy Rights/Privacy Policy.