Broncos' Zach Grossi Opens up on His Fight With Cancer

Yahoo

25-06-2025

Broncos' Zach Grossi Opens up on His Fight With Cancer originally appeared on Athlon Sports.
Now in his 13th year of coaching, Denver Broncos' passing game specialist Zach Grossi has had quite the journey to his now fourth year in Denver. But that journey faced its peak of adversity in 2024 when an MRI revealed a cancerous mass in Grossi's chest.
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A biopsy would later reveal the mass to be a yolk sac tumor, which would begin the toughest stretch of Grossi's life. But he didn't go through it alone.
"I was taken aback," Jacqueline, Grossi's wife, told The Athletic's Broncos staff writer Nick Kosmider. "I think I underestimated how much they would help. They were awesome from the get-go, from the first day Zack got the diagnosis. There were constant texts and encouragement. It was awesome.'
While Grossi faced the biggest challenge of his life, the Broncos' organization was right there to support him throughout the journey.
It all started mid-week after a Week 4 win over the New York Jets. As the team was preparing for their next game, Grossi received the news that he had a massive tumor growing in his chest.
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'It's just like, boom, everything stops,' Grossi said. 'Your whole world gets flipped upside down.'
As Grossi delivered the news to his wife, he got a text from Broncos' owner Greg Penner and fellow owner Carrie Walton Penner that they were fully behind him as he started this battle.
Looking back, Grossi said he noticed signs of the tumor based on feelings of fatigue and the inability to sleep. But, in football, you learn to fight through any pain and discomfort because it's just part of the game, part of the grind.
"You rationalize everything. You never think something's wrong," Grossi said. "I was an idiot."
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Broncos' offensive coordinator Joe Lombardi shared how his grandfather, Green Bay Packers' legendary coach Vince Lombardi, who passed away at 57 from colon cancer, shared a similar mindset.
"The culture of football is, 'You've got to be tough.' You have an ache and pain or something's bothering you, and you say, 'I'm just going to tough it out.' Shoot, it happened to my grandpa," Lombardi said. "He had cancer and was like, 'Gah, I got to be tougher.' Never got it checked out. You chalk it up to the grind. … It's a wake-up call for all of us. If something's wrong, get it checked out.'
Eventually, Grossi confided in Broncos' offensive quality control close and Grossi's close friend, Logan Kilgore. Kilgore knew something was up, and Grossi met with the team's trainer, Paul Burant.
'He's like, 'I haven't been sleeping.' I'm like, 'What do you mean you're not sleeping? We're exhausted,'' Kilgore said. "The last thing I was thinking about doing when I go back to my room is staying awake. … He's telling me, 'Man, I just feel like I can't catch my breath.''
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When getting checked out by Kilgore, an abnormal heart rate raised concern and led to Grossi getting bloodwork done and the MRI scan that revealed his tumor.
Jacqueline's reaction, though, when Grossi delivered the news, may have been the first signal that this tumor wouldn't be the end of their journey.
'She doesn't even blink," Grossi said. "She says, 'We have to kill it.' I'm a wreck. She's like, 'Calm down. We just have to kill it.' She never wavered from that. She was so positive."
Grossi called his wife the toughest person he knew. But that toughness had been revealed through Grossi as well, as he made his way through the coaching ranks in his career. He started at Concord University, where he graduated with a bachelor's degree, and bounced from the NFL to the collegiate level for seven years before landing in Denver.
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'Me and Zack have always agreed on this fighter mentality,' Jacqueline said. 'We were just like, 'Hey, we are going to fight our way out of it.' It's kind of what we had been through while chasing this career and stuff like that. We're like, 'This is just a different fight.''
But Jacqueline and Grossi wouldn't be going into this fight alone. Broncos' vice president of player health and performance, Beau Lowery, helped the young coach set up an expedited treatment plan and got everything scheduled a week after the diagnosis.
Denver Broncos head coach Sean Payton watches play downfield during the second quarter against the Buffalo Bills in an AFC wild card game at Highmark Stadium.Gregory Fisher-Imagn Images
However, days before Grossi was scheduled to start his treatment, he began coughing up blood. He was admitted to CU Anschutz hospital just outside Denver, where he met Dr. Lauren Graham, an on-call oncologist, who happened the specialize in the tumor Grossi was battling.
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'It was a miracle she was working that night,' Grossi said. 'I meet her and she tells me, 'Hey, this is what you've got, and this is the treatment plan.' She said, 'I think you need to start chemo tomorrow.' I'm like, 'OK, here we go.' Once I got the treatment plan, it became a very clear opponent every day. 'This is what you have to do.' … It was fourth-and-1 every day.'
After two days of progress, Grossi hit another setback on his third day. Blood clots were found in the PICC line used to deliver his chemo to his body, and it had caused a pulmonary embolism.
Grossi had hit the lowest point in his journey. He was making calls to family members, making financial and burial decisions, and trying to set things up for his daughter and wife.
'I remember one of the doctors saying, 'This is one of the most complex cases I've ever been on,'' Jacqueline recalled. 'It's usually more straightforward. Like, 'OK, this is the cancer, and this is what we're going to do.' He just had so many little things that were popping up that had to make them regroup and say, 'OK, what's our strategy?' That was hard.'
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Grossi's doctors were able to find the right balance of treatments and get the coach ready for his next round of chemo. In the meantime, the Broncos' nutrition staff had worked to put together customized meals to help Grossi with his treatment, as well as meals for his family as they remained by his side.
Broncos' director of football video Joe Harrington set up a film system for Grossi so he could continue to do as much coaching as he was capable of. Kilgore would call Grossi on drives home, and Broncos' general manager George Paton and his wife would check in on the young coach.
In the middle of November, Grossi ascended from the neutropenic 'dip' that immediately follows a chemo treatment, and he was cleared to visit the team facility. Sean Payton had Grossi break the team down in their final huddle before they played the Atlanta Falcons in Week 11.
"He's a fighter," Payton said. "It's inspiring."
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Grossi finished his final round of chemo and was ready to return to the Broncos' sideline for their season finale against the Kansas City Chiefs, a game in which they needed to win to make the playoffs.
However, Grossi hit yet another setback. But he didn't flinch to get help this time.
'I know something's wrong. I go to the care clinic, they swab me, and they're like, 'You've got COVID,'' Grossi said. 'Not a huge deal for a normal person, but for someone in the middle of chemo, they're like, 'I wouldn't do the game.''
Grossi missed the Broncos' Week 18 game, but the team won and made the playoffs. Grossi recovered and was cleared to coach Denver's playoff game against the Buffalo Bills, his first playoff game of his career.
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'I got back on the headset, the full thing,' Grossi said. 'There was a moment in the game where I was talking on the headset, and Sean goes, 'Who is this?' I was like, 'It's Zack Grossi, baby! Let's roll!' Everyone started laughing. So making it back for the playoff game was very special. Everybody was unbelievable.'
Kilgore said it was like Grossi was never gone. He got right back in the flow of things and provided a sense of normalcy.
Five weeks after the game, Grossi's tumor was removed, and his scans revealed he was completely cancer-free.
'You just appreciate every bit of what you're doing right now,' Grossi said. 'There is never a moment where you're looking like, 'Man, I'm ready for this to be over.' Like, 'I'm getting out of here today; I've got the weekend off.' You're never looking at anything like that ever again. It's much easier to be where your feet are.'
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Grossi was back on the field for the Broncos' rookie minicamp in May, and he'll be ready to coach the 2025 season. A journey defined by strength, perseverance, and unwavering support from his loved ones and the Broncos' organization demonstrated how togetherness can battle even the stiffest of challenges.
Related: Former Broncos Star Predicted to Sign With AFC West Rival
This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 23, 2025, where it first appeared.