After Vic Fangio was hired as the Broncos head coach this offseason, he talked about getting more out of Von Miller in his ninth season.
Miller’s been on board with that goal, but he doesn’t think that improvement off the edge of the defense will be limited to his spot. Bradley Chubb had 12 sacks as a rookie and Miller said he’s seen signs of a “totally different” player as the 2018 first-round pick prepares for this second NFL season.
“I don’t even know what he did,” Miller said, via the team’s website. “If I find out what he did, I’m going to start doing it. I think it’s just natural. I think it’s just natural for defensive players to take a huge leap from Year 1 to 2. You saw it with me. I had 11 sacks and I jumped to 18.5 sacks my second year. You saw the same thing with Khalil Mack and Vic Beasley and all of these guys. Same thing with Bradley Chubb. I don’t know if it’s a certain drill or sleep or whatever else, I just think it’s exposure and time. He will definitely be a brand-new player this season.”
Facing Miller and Chubb was daunting for opposing teams in 2018. Should they both find new levels in Fangio’s defense, offensive linemen will be scrambling for time machines to go back the good old days.