Zac Taylor texted Sean McVay after the Los Angeles Rams acquired Von Miller from the Denver Broncos in a midseason trade
It was not to congratulate him, but to thank him.
The Bengals were going to Denver in December, and the Cincinnati coach was thankful he didn’t have to worry about facing the Broncos’ all-time sacks leader who wouldn’t mess up his game plan anymore.
“Little did I know what was going to happen,” Taylor said this week, with a laugh, as he weighed ways to keep Miller from haunting Joe Burrow like he did Cam Newton in Super Bowl 50 six years ago.
Taylor said Miller requires special attention, even at age 32 and on a team that also includes Aaron Donald and Jalen Ramsey.
“There is no question,” he said. Von Miller is Von Miller.
He’s the same star who celebrated one of the best defensive performances in Super Bowl history with an unprecedented six-year, $114 million contract and what Peyton Manning called a “celebration world tour,” a five-year stint. months that encompassed appearances with celebrities on television, including dance contests, as well as lavish parties.
Miller didn’t get back to the playoffs until six years later, after being traded to the Rams on Nov. 1.
It was a bittersweet moment for Miller, who still speaks in the first person when referring to the Broncos.
“When you win a title, that makes you addicted, like you want it all the time,” Miller said. “And in the last few years we haven’t even been close. So coming to the Los Angeles Rams has been a real blessing.”
Broncos general manager George Paton acquired two picks from the second day of the draft in exchange for Miller, who was in the final year of his contract.
Paton also agreed to pay $9 of the remaining $10.5 million in Miller’s salary for 2021. Essentially, he bought the Rams’ second- and third-round draft picks in 2022.
“George Paton could have sent me to any team in the NFL and I’m sure he could have gotten more,” Miller suggested. “He paid most of my salary so he could come to the Los Angeles Rams. They sent me a Super Bowl candidate. And I say thank you, because I always felt that I had a relationship with him that went beyond American football.”
Miller described her stay of more than a decade in Denver and half a season in Los Angeles as “having two children: you love them both, even though they are totally different.”
After a slow start with the Rams, aggravated by a sprained ankle, Miller has had seven sacks in his last seven games, including one on Tom Brady, in which he caused a fumble that the Rams controlled to beat the Rams 30-27. Buccaneers in the playoffs.
Taylor first experienced the magnitude of Miller’s game in 2010, when he was a graduate assistant at Texas A&M under his father-in-law Mike Sherman, a former Packers coach.
Miller guided the Aggies to a 9-4 record and soon became John Elway’s first pick in the draft, and second overall to Newton in the 2011 draft.
“It’s part of one of the most special seasons I’ve ever been a part of,” Taylor said. “Von took charge of the games that season and helped us beat teams like Oklahoma, Nebraska and Texas. So I’ve always loved Von very much. I am aware of his capabilities and how he can define a game. I’ve seen him too many times where he got away from us.”