Getty Denver Broncos Von Miller kneels.
Former Denver Broncos edge rusher Von Miller signed a six-year, $120 million deal with the Buffalo Bills this offseason.
The Bills and the Broncos are both expected to be leading contenders in the AFC this season, but Miller is not exactly embracing the rivalry against his former team.
Miller admitted to Kyle Newman of The Denver Post that he wants the Broncos to win as many games as possible.
“We’ve been close in the AFC West for a very long time, and now we’ve got Russell Wilson, Jerry Jeudy’s going to be insane this year, Courtland Sutton’s going to be insane this year,” Miller said. “I want those guys to win as many games as possible.”
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Miller Wanted to Return to the Broncos
Miller’s reference to the Broncos as “we” is telling. He made his desire to return to the Broncos this offseason clear.
On March 7, he tweeted “I kind of want that old thing back.. 5280”.
I kinda want that old thing back.. 5280
Miller confirmed his interest in an Instagram story.
“I wouldn’t tease y’all like that, man,” Miller said. “It’s real, man. My first time ever being a free agent, man. I’m just sitting back on the beach, man. Waiting on it, man. Broncos Country, wassup?”
According to The Athletic’s Dan Pompei, Miller even contacted the Broncos about a potential return, while he was still playing in the playoffs with the Los Angeles Rams. Unfortunately, Miller never heard from the Broncos during free agency.
“While the Rams were still in the playoffs, Miller got word to Broncos higher-ups that he would be on board for them to trade for Russell Wilson or Aaron Rodgers and bring him back,” Pompei wrote. “Once free agency began, however, he never heard from his old team.”
Nevertheless, Miller told Newman that “orange and blue” will stay in his heart forever.
“This team is going to be great,” Miller said. “It’s bittersweet that I won’t be here to be a part of it, because I’ve still got orange and blue in my heart and it will stay that way forever.”
Miller Would Have Taken Less to Sign With the Cowboys
Before signing with the Bills, Miller was interested in joining the Dallas Cowboys. Miller told Pompei that he was willing to take less money to go to Dallas.
“I told them I was ready to come to the Cowboys,” Miller said. “I would have taken less to go to Dallas because it’s Dallas. But I wouldn’t take that much less.”
According to Pompei, the Cowboys offered Miller a five-year, $70 million deal with two years guaranteed. That is a significant decrease from his new contract with the Bills.
Miller was born in Dallas, and he attended high school in DeSoto, Texas, which is a suburb of Dallas.
Pompei wrote about Miller’s continuing connection to DeSoto.
“In suburban DeSoto, outside of Dallas, Miller owns a plot of land next to his boyhood home, where his parents still live,” Pompei wrote. “Chickens, turkeys, goats and cows roam there, and the dream is to build his own place on that dirt to spend his best years. He throws a ‘block party’ in DeSoto every year — Von Miller Day.”