Von Miller is one of the most dangerous players in the NFL. He’s terrorized some of the league’s best offenses and wreaked havoc on the game’s biggest stage.
As such, it takes one heck of a game plan to slow down the Denver Broncos outside linebacker. But if you ask the man himself, nobody is better at giving Miller fits than Bill Belichick.
Miller revealed his “five toughest guys” to play against Wednesday in a piece for the Players’ Tribune, and three are on the New England Patriots: quarterback Tom Brady, tight end Rob Gronkowski and Belichick. Brady and Gronk make sense, but what about Belichick? For Miller, the Patriots coach’s genius starts with his unpredictability.
“Some of the packages we see from the Patriots, I’ve never seen before on a football field,” Miller writes.
The four-time Pro Bowler obliged with an example.
“They’ll line Gronk up way out wide at the X receiver position, and the running back will be lined up on Brady’s left side,” he writes. “So in my mind, I’m thinking, Damn, it’s all good. No tight end. No RB chipper in sight. Here we go. Let’s eat.
“… And then all of a sudden Brady sends Gronk in slow motion back toward me, then the ball is snapped. So I release and Gronk is coming from the outside to chip me, and I don’t even see him coming.
“I’ve played a lot of football, but there’s still stuff the Patriots do that surprises me.”
That’s some pretty good insight into what makes Belichick such a successful head coach (and Josh McDaniels such a good offensive coordinator).
Belichick will have his work cut out for him Sunday when the teams meet in Denver, though, as the Broncos have won three of the last four matchups, including two in the postseason.
Click to read what Tom Brady thinks of Von Miller >>
Thumbnail photo via Chris Humphreys/USA TODAY Sports Images
