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For all of the embarrassment the Denver Broncos received in their monumental collapse in the Super Bowl last season, there should always be an asterisks next to that game noting that three of the top five players on the team were on injured reserve for that game. Von Miller here, along with Ryan Clady and Chris Harris Jr.
With these guys back in the lineup, the sky is the limit - even Tony Gonzalez's 19-0 prediction for the Broncos is a possibility. If only a slim one. Von Miller is back to his lighter weight and appears to be as explosive as ever,which bodes well for his potential lining up opposite DeMarcus Ware.
Why is He a Top Bronco?
This question almost seems as silly as when we'll ask it for Peyton Manning in our final Top Broncos post. It is widely considered by people that Von Miller had a down year in 2013, but nothing could be further from the truth. In just nine games, Von Miller posted a whopping +40.3 PFF grade. PFF went on to say,
Miller suffered a torn ACL in late December. The injury could mean a slow start to the 2014 season for Von Miller, who played an abbreviated season in 2013. Miller finished graded at +40.3, which ranked first among all 4-3 outside linebackers.
With more attention being placed on DeMarcus Ware we should see Miller make more of an impact in the pass rush than he did last year. This defense has great expectations and has the potential to be something special in 2014. Looking towards the future, Miller thinks J.J. Watts deal of $100 million was worth every penny and with Miller being just as impactful as Watts, Elway could be in for some tough negotiations with Miller in the coming years. As far as I am concerned, Miller is a cornerstone piece on that defense and worthy of the big contract.
Von Miller Career Stats
| YR | GM | TKL | AST | SK | FF | TD |
| 2011 | 15 | 50 | 14 | 11.5 | 3 | 0 |
| 2012 | 16 | 55 | 13 | 18.5 | 6 | 1 |
| 2013 | 9 | 27 | 7 | 5.0 | 3 | 1 |
| Career | 40 | 132 | 34 | 35.0 | 12 | 2 |
Von Miller has proven to be a dynamic player on defense, often saving his best moves for third down and long or late in the fourth quarter. The greats are game changers and Von Miller is a game changer. His best seasons came while Elvis Dumervil was lining up across the line and let's be honest here, DeMarcus Ware is a better pass rusher than Dumervil. 2014 is going to be exciting, indeed.
Projecting Von Miller in 2014
So how do we project how well Miller will do in 2014? Well considering the duo over Miller and Ware plan on sacking as many quarterbacks together as entire teams in 2014, I'm going to go big here. Von Miller snags 20 sacks and Ware 15 for an even 35 sacks on the season. That's pretty darn big if you ask me!
However, with Ware saying, "At the end of the day, a number's only a result that people can judge. But why not be the tandem out there that at the end of the day we can say the tandem that was best in the league ever. That's the name - me and Von - that's what you want. You want something bigger than that, that lasts forever."
35 seems not big enough, so let's predict something bigger. Miller with 25 sacks and Ware with 20 for 45 sacks total. Yeah baby! That is a number that would last forever. Go Broncos!