In all those years, I never tried to figure out how many hours I worked.. It paid $25 a week plus room and board, he said with a laugh. He depended on him for help recovering from injuries, advice on health concerns when evaluating players and, often, simply the friendship that they cultivated over . Probably the most loyal employee the team has had and will ever have, Broncos president/CEO Joe Ellis said in a phone interview. The browser you are using is no longer supported on this site. There is no verbal banter of windy platitudes to stoke quixotic fantasies of either management or players. Found this classic can in hubs stuff. Greeks relationship with him was very personal he helped Pat on a lot of different matters, but he was very helpful giving Pat help throughout the season on where his team was at and it was an honest assessment at all times, which was important to Pat.. Tonight, we celebrated head athletic trainer Steve Antonopulos. The Broncos accurate confidence about Gotsis recovery greatly depended on the assessment and follow-through bythe mancalled Greek at the clubs UCHealth Training Center. Championships are made on practice fields; championships are also made in training rooms and rehab gyms. Running back could be a sneaky priority need for the Denver Broncos. On April 28, moments after the selection of Gotsis, the Broncos draft headquarters was ecstatic, as tweeted by public relations vice president Patrick Smyth: Broncos GM John Elway, HC Gary Kubiak & DL coach Bill Kollar celebrate selection of DT Adam Gotsis in 2nd rd. Over that time, Antonopulos worked all eight Super Bowls that the Broncos have appeared in. Fangio also added that "I have hard time believing that Greek is really retired. but it can also be stressful. Adhesive bandages, electrodes, ice bags, and kinesiology tape. We certainly wouldnt have gone to Cheers had we known it would take that long. https://t.co/2uuh4JmP6H#ThankYouGreek pic.twitter.com/VljaBUgaTn, Probably the most loyal employee the team has had and will ever have, Broncos president/CEO Joe Ellis told Ryan OHalloran of The Denver Post. With unmatched dedication and loyalty to the Broncos, Greek became a trusted confidant for so many coaches, staff members and especially Pat Bowlen. @Broncos celebrating head trainer Steve "Greek" Antonopulos tonight. Those things are unbelievable and the number of great people and great minds of technology was phenomenal with what you can do for the medical care of football players., Without question, it was our second year here (1984) and he had to go in the offseason to Boston for a Lloyds of London insurance policy. Florida's Anthony Richardson, one of the draft's most intriguing QB prospects, told reporters on Friday that in high school he modeled his game after two notable passers: Cam Newton and Lamar Jackson. Athletic trainers are witnesses to the magic and myth of extraordinary athletic feats. When I committed to come back for this past season, I told John [Elway], This is it. He was a fixture on our sidelines for the greatest moments in team history, the first person running on the field to care for an injured player and the one who supported them through every step of their recovery. Quarterback Mike White said he'd like to return to the New York Jets, but knows it might not happen as he heads toward free agency. 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. For instance, his work with offensive tackle Ryan Clady transformed what would have been dead salary cap money into transferable salary through Cladys trade to the New York Jets. If you dont have passion, you are in the wrong field. Antonopulos, whose office was routinely owner Pat Bowlen's first stop each morning when Bowlen arrived to work, is the longest-tenured employee in the franchise's history and is the only employee to have been with the Broncos for each of the team's eight Super Bowl trips. The Broncos will name their training room after Antonopulos. The following browsers are supported: Chrome, Edge (v80 and later), Firefox and Safari. Here's a list of accomplishments that Steve Antonopulos earned with the Denver Broncos. My wife deserves this and we need to move on, Antonopulos said in a phone interview Sunday with The Denver Post. I was making good money on the highway and going to college. We thought it would be (quick). After becoming head athletic trainer for the South Metro Fire Rescue in Centennial from 2014-15, Garcia rejoined the Broncos training staff as Antonopulos top assistant in 2016. Five hours later, John went through everything you could imagine and he ended up vomiting all over the place. Their grandparents often move better in that instant. The Broncos had never been to the playoffs and had just two winning seasons before Antonopulos arrived. It was one of the hardest decisions I ever had to make. There is another player meeting from 3 to 4 p.m. Post practice treatments follow until we are done at approximately 6 p.m. On game day, Greek arrives very early as well. 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. Antonopulos called the honor breathtaking.. I thought I would be (at Fort Hays) my whole career, Antonopulos said. Over that time, Antonopulos worked all eight Super Bowls that the Broncos have appeared in. Jun 07, 2021 at 08:45 AM. He arrived most days at 4:30 a.m. and was often the last to leave team headquarters at night. Our organization wishes him the very best in his retirement. June 9, 2021 6:00 am MT. By choosing I Accept, you consent to our use of cookies and other tracking technologies. * 21+ (19+ CA-ONT) (18+ NH/WY). Longtime head athletic trainer Steve "Greek" Antonopulos is retiring after 45 years with the club, the team announced Monday. He had the fingernail on his thumb totally torn off and was bleeding all over the place. Antonopulos treated 983 players who appeared in at least one regular season/playoff game for the Broncos. Yet behind closed doors they respond to the ordinary, commonplace maladies of bruises, lacerations, soft tissue tears, and broken bones. I have always respected the fact that Steve is the kind of person that will look you in the eye and tell you what he is thinking and commit to his word. If youre doing something you love, you dont watch the clock or think about it, he said. Among his career accolades are the Fain-Cain Memorial Award (2011), an honor bestowed to trainer who exemplifies long-term commitment to the NFL, the NFL/PFATS Athletic Training Staff of the Year Award (1987), the National Athletic Trainers Association Athletic Trainer Service Award (1996) and the NATA Most Distinguished Athletic Trainer Award (2006). The Denver Broncos hired Steve Antonopulos as their assistant trainer in 1976. We went a day early and went to see the Celtics play the Bulls. Antonopulos started with the Broncos as an assistant athletic trainer in 1976, became the team's director of rehabilitation in 1979 and was hired as Denver's head athletic trainer in 1980. Antonopulos applied for the job and Hurst reached out to have breakfast in Denver when Fort Hays was coming through town between basketball games at Northern Colorado and Southern Colorado (now CSU-Pueblo). I was blessed to be a part of the elation of that. It's spanned 900. He had the fingernail on his thumb totally torn off and was bleeding all over the place. We sincerely thank his wife Susan and the entire Antonopulos family for sharing Greek with us for so many years.". 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. He told me after the fact he was going to take a half-hour (for the interview) and be on his way, Antonopulos said. Terms at draftkings.com/sportsbook. He was very straight forward, he was very honest and he was a really good communicator in that he has a good bedside manner in a position where that is obviously required.. Please logout and login again. A motto for Antonopulos was Defend My Desk., When a new owner or coach was hired, he said: They come in and have 100 things going on and what they dont need is somebody trying to make an appointment and promote themselves. Antonopulos, who called Bowlen the ultimate owner, was selected by the Bowlen family in 2019 to present Pat at the Pro Football Hall of Fame induction. When the Broncos open training camp next month, Antonopulos wont be on the sidelines for the first time since 1975. For 45 years, athletic trainer Steve Greek Antonopulos has been the epitome of what the Denver Broncos are all about.Greek, there arent words to describe the impact youve had on our organization, and we wish you nothing but the very best in retirement!#ThankYouGreek pic.twitter.com/HAKN6t7S7P. We always worked with Craig Hospital and the concussion experts and developed our protocols, which are similar to some that are used today. Ill have to say, back in the day, we always felt we were on the cusp of the concussion stuff. "No one cared more about the players than Greek. It is their livelihood, and it hurts to see them be injured and not be able to perform. All three are full training camp participants. 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. Our organization wishes him the very best in his retirement. As he would watch games with his father and neighbors, he would say to himself, Someday, somehow, someway, Im going to work for the Denver Broncos.. He is believed to be the longest-tenured trainer with one team in NFL history, and Greek is the only person to be a part of all eight Broncos Super Bowl appearances. Toward the end Elways ripped bicep. And these team doctors, for licensed medical doctors they are, can earn in the range of $200,000 and $512,500 per year. There are a hundred athletic trainers currently employed in the NFL and the average salary for those trainers is about $75,000, a figure that can rise to $100,000 depending on experience. He worked 941 total games, during which Denver went 438-311-1 in the regular season/playoffs. His 43 years with the Broncos is believed to be the longest tenure by an athletic trainer with one NFL team. All other NFL-related trademarks are trademarks of the National Football League. Here are those results. After the 1980 season, he was elevated to head trainer and split his old salary in half to hire two assistants. Steve Antonopulos announced his retirement on Monday. It paid $25 a week plus room and board, he said with a laugh. Five hours later, he was driving me 80 miles an hour down I-25 so I could get to the basketball game that night. Be the first one to comment on this story. The doctor that gave him the physical was Arthur Pappas, one of the Red Sox owners, and he took us over to Fenway Park and I still have the picture of John and myself at home plate.