The Denver Broncos opened training camp this week in a building most of the roster had never set foot in before Tuesday. Veterans reported to Broncos Park Powered by CommonSpirit, the team’s new $175 million headquarters, and the reaction from the locker room was immediate.
“Honestly, everything is state of the art,” cornerback Pat Surtain II said Tuesday, per the team’s official site. Surtain, entering his sixth season in Denver, said he first walked through the facility a day earlier and hadn’t stopped thinking about it since.
What’s Actually Inside the New Facility
The building officially opened its doors on July 13 after nearly two years of construction. It runs three stories and covers more than 205,000 square feet, connecting the weight room, indoor practice field and locker room under one roof for the first time in franchise history ā Denver Broncos officials confirmed. Player-dedicated space grew by more than 21,000 square feet, roughly a third larger than what the old building offered.
That connectivity matters more than it sounds. Denver’s previous complex, built in 1990, required players to walk outside and cross a parking lot just to get from the locker room to the weight room. According to Denver Sports, that inconvenience is gone entirely in the new layout, with the building still receiving some finishing touches even as camp opened.
The players are BACK for #BroncosCamp.
And this is what was waiting for them. š¤© pic.twitter.com/KePua5CLjQ
— Denver Broncos (@Broncos) July 28, 2026
Guard Quinn Meinerz, also entering his sixth season, put it simply: “The locker room is close, the food is right there, the weight room is right there, the field is right here. The ease of everything is just incredible.”
The Locker Room Grade That Wouldn’t Go Away
The upgrade wasn’t cosmetic ambition. It was a response to years of player complaints. The NFLPA’s annual team report card ā an anonymous player survey the league has tried to keep from full public release, though results have leaked in recent years ā repeatedly flagged Denver’s old locker room as one of the worst in football. The NFLPA’s 2025 report card noted the team had plans in place for a new facility specifically because of feedback like this.
Broncos Owner and CEO Greg Penner acknowledged the grade directly earlier this year. “The last couple surveys, our players have said our locker room’s not great. It’s too small. We might’ve gotten an F on that, and that’s why we’re building a new facility,” Penner said, according to NBC Sports.
Meinerz didn’t hold back describing the replacement. “I couldn’t stop smiling,” he said of seeing the new locker room, adding it has “more of a social atmosphere” than the old space and calling the experience “incredible.”
| Category | Old Facility (1990-built) | New Facility (Opened July 13, 2026) |
|---|---|---|
| Total size | Baseline | ~30% larger |
| Player space | Baseline | +21,000 sq ft (~1/3 larger) |
| Locker room (NFLPA grade) | D | Not yet graded |
| Weight room-locker room connection | Separate, outdoor walk required | Fully connected, indoor |
Why It’s Happening Now
Denver announced the project in November 2023, structuring it as a 100 percent privately funded build by the Walton-Penner ownership group rather than relying on public money. Construction began the following spring, with the stated target of finishing before the 2026 season ā a timeline the team ultimately hit, opening the doors just over two weeks before camp.
The design firm HOK, which led the project, said the building’s layout wasn’t arbitrary. Designers reportedly tracked player step counts between the weight room, locker room and practice facility during the planning phase and found Denver’s totals far exceeded those at comparable NFL sites, according to HOK’s project summary. That data shaped where each room sits relative to the others.
For a team that’s invested heavily in its roster the past two offseasons ā bringing in Sean Payton, extending core pieces on the offensive line, adding weapons like receiver Jaylen Waddle this summer ā the facility is being framed internally as the next piece of infrastructure behind the on-field moves.
What Comes Next
Training camp practices open to fans continue through August under the team’s 2026 Training Camp Powered by Ford schedule, though capacity remains limited in spots because of ongoing construction work around the new building. The Broncos have not yet detailed a formal ribbon-cutting or public tour date for the new headquarters.
Surtain, for his part, wasn’t shy about the comparison to the rest of the league. “My expectations were high, and it definitely exceeded my expectations,” he said. “I don’t think there’s anything like this in the league.”
