Von Miller is excited about new ‘dogs’ joining Broncos to make push in AFC West
Broncos linebacker Von Miller took last season’s 23-3 loss to the Chiefs at snowy Arrowhead Stadium particularly hard.
That loss meant the Broncos would have a losing season for the third straight year and miss the playoffs for the fourth time since winning Super Bowl 50.
“I’m ready to hit the gear, I’m ready to go again, I’m ready to bring whatever we had in the past back. I want that back,” Miller said after losing to the Chiefs. “Down year, two down years, three down years, four down years, we did that. Now I’m trying to get back on again.
“I’m not just speaking for me. Whenever we put it all out there and we come up short, it’s definitely defeating. It’s more than just winning and losing, it just defeats my soul to go out there and play the way we play and lose the way we lose.”
The Chiefs have won the AFC West in each of the four seasons that Denver has missed the playoffs.
But the Broncos made a couple of big moves this offseason, trading for defensive lineman Jurrell Casey, who made five straight Pro Bowls with the Titans, and Jaguars cornerback A.J. Bouye.
Those moves have Miller excited for the 2020 season and the AFC West race.
“I had been telling the guys, like, last season, ‘We’re going to go and get one or two more dogs. That’s all we need, one or two more dogs,’” Miller told the team’s website. “And guys were like, ‘What position are we going to get?’ I was like, ‘It doesn’t matter; we’ve got guys everywhere. We need one or two more dogs. It doesn’t matter if its running back, tight end, receiver, defensive end, it don’t matter.’ And that’s what (general manager John) Elway went and got: He got us one or two more dogs. We’ve got a really competitive team this year.”
Denver also should have a couple of its own dogs back. Linebacker Bradley Chubb and cornerback Bryce Callahan are expected to return from injuries, which makes Miller even happier.
“A guy like me, it’s easy to get me excited, but I’m super excited about the team that we’ve got this year,” Miller said. “Jurrell Casey; we’re going to get Chubb back; we’ve got A.J. Bouye; we’re going to have Bryce Callahan back; I am super excited to see A.J. Johnson in his second season starting.”
In January, Miller talked about why he’s fired up about former Mizzou/Lee’s Summit High School star Drew Lock taking over at quarterback for the Broncos.
“Whenever you have a confident quarterback out there balling and doing all the great stuff he does, everybody feeds off that,” Miller told Sports Illustrated. “It gets everyone excited.”
This story was originally published April 9, 2020 at 8:59 AM.
