Football has taken Von Miller all over the world.
On Saturday morning, it took him to the middle of the desert in Las Vegas Raiders territory. There, at Pinecrest Academy’s football field on the barren edge of Henderson, Nev., the Broncos linebacker was showing some of the NFL’s younger players all of his best moves.
Advertisem*nt
It was his fifth annual pass rush summit, and three of his 12 pupils play for the Raiders, a divisional rival — the old-timers have to be cringing at that.
“Broncos helping Raiders?” the retired-but-doesn’t-look-it DeMarcus Ware said, laughing. “Is this real life?”
“It’s all love, all pass rush,” instructor Chuck Smith yelled out at one point.
Miller, 32, has 106 sacks in his NFL career, and the eight-time All-Pro and former Super Bowl MVP says his summit is all about learning the craft.
Learn the moves. Work hard. And have fun like Miller does.
“They call it the Von Miller pass rush summit, but really I am just the host,” he said. “I learned something from Maxx Crosby today. And they can learn something from me.”
This is the second year the event has been held in Las Vegas — it was virtual last year due to the pandemic — and Miller brought along former Broncos teammate Ware and Smith, a former Falcon, to help him teach the players.
“Every year, guys try to sharpen their toolbox,” Ware said, “but they do it at OTAs, minicamp or training camp. Having the guys come out here and showcase what they do best — these are some of the best guys at the long-arm or spin move, and they explain their move — and the other guys can put that in their toolbox.
“And even the guys who are showing their move learn something. It’s cool to see that fraternity.”
.@VonMiller shares an inside move with the group. pic.twitter.com/yrdQnTGd65
— Vic Tafur (@VicTafur) June 13, 2021
There is more talking and instruction than actual drills, and that’s something Miller wanted as he tried to create a Pro Bowl-type setting.
“I wanted it to be more of a social setting where we could just link up and learn,” Miller said.
While Aaron Donald, Khalil Mack and Shaq Barrett have come in past years, this year’s group was younger and a little less polished. In addition to the Raiders’ Crosby, Darius Philon and Solomon Thomas, the Broncos’ Malik Reed, the Chiefs’ Joshua Kaindoh, the Packers’ Rashan Gary, the Jaguars’ K’Lavon Chaisson, the Patriots’ Josh Uche, the Cowboys’ Carlos Watkins, the Rams’ Max Roberts and the Steelers’ Jarron Jones and Jamir Jones also attended.
“It’s a great event and I don’t see it ending anytime soon,” Miller said. “I love it. I love coming out here with the guys, especially the undrafted and young guys — you can feel the hunger and the desire. It’s contagious and it rubs off on me.”
“Master pass rush specialist” Smith, who had 58.5 sacks in eight seasons with the Falcons, loves getting hands-on with some of the best young players in the league.
Advertisem*nt
“They learn here how to do signature pass rush moves,” Smith said. “You’re not learning from people who don’t know what they are talking about. You have to not only learn moves, but when and how and, most importantly, how to fix a flaw when they arise, as you saw what we were working on today.
“… I try and teach the guys to knock the quarterback out of the game. Knock the quarterback out of the game and generate revenue. … You can learn a move from a great player and watch your sacks grow from 5 to 9 or 9 to 15. You never know what nugget can push you to the next level, and these guys here definitely picked up some today.”
Smith will cite former players to the guys here and what they did to get an edge.
“The great pass rushers of all time have signature moves,” Smith said. “If you’re with the Raiders, Howie Long did a hump-rip. If you like the Vikings, John Randle did a spin. If you like the Eagles, Reggie White did a rip-hump.
“Now, every team has had a bust. Close your eyes and think of that player and you don’t think of any signature move. And when you close your eyes and think of Von, you think of the spin, Aaron Donald the cross-chop, T.J. Watt, cross-chop … the great ones have moves.”
Ware, meanwhile, is a walking encyclopedia of pass rush moves — he spent 10 minutes working with Crosby on hand movements — and Miller said it cracks him up to hear him with the really young players.
“DeMarcus will give them a whole lecture on how to beat offensive linemen,” Miller said, “and one of the young guys said, ‘So … just chop him?’ And he said, ‘Yes.'”
Ware is as natural a coach as he was a dominant edge player, but …
“I love to teach, but it’s all about the time for me,” he said. “7 a.m. to 6 p.m. … I can’t live that life.”
Crosby and @DeMarcusWare do the crazy hand jive pic.twitter.com/QnG60VgtZw
— Vic Tafur (@VicTafur) June 13, 2021
His fresh perspective is needed. Players have less time in the offseason to work with their teams, so outside help is needed.
“With the collective bargaining agreement,” Smith said, “there is just not a lot of time for young players to learn from coaches on their teams. So it’s vital what Von is doing; it was much needed.”
Advertisem*nt
The idea for Miller’s pass rush summit was born five years ago when one of his coaches asked him to work with the Falcons’ Vic Beasley.
“Vic went back to Atlanta and told the media, and it was like, “Von’s going to have this pass rush summit,’ and so I just rode the wave.”
Miller wanted to do something that was valuable for the league’s pass rushers and didn’t take up a lot of their time.
“And I decided I am just going to give them all of my secrets, going to give them everything I know, everything I got,” Miller said. “There was backlash, like why would I do that, but I am just so comfortable in my game and I thought it was a great way to give back to a game that has given so much to me.”
Now everybody is copying him. The NFL offensive linemen have their summit and the tight ends just started their own annual university, led by magna cum laude stars George Kittle and Travis Kelce.
“Once you get complacent in this game, it’s over,” Miller said. “When you start feeling like you’ve learned it all or that you’ve figured it out, it’s over for you. You have to constantly work on your craft, your body and the mental aspect of the game to keep evolving.
“This is Year 11 for me and I am still trying to get better.”
Miller likes the idea of being the pioneer of position gatherings, and besides an NFL quarterbacks one, there is an even more obvious summit waiting to be held.
“The most fitting one would be a wide receivers and defensive backs summit,” Miller said. “Because those guys could actually get on the field, they could go through routes, talk scheme and they could get quarterbacks there.
“There is so many things that they could do, but there is just so much pride involved with those guys.”
And with that, Miller took in a look at the desert around him.
“That new Raiders stadium is super cool, their facility is nice — you can’t be a hater,” Miller said, smiling. “All they have to do now is win some games.”
(Photos courtesy of Ben Swanson)
Vic Tafur is a senior writer for The Athletic covering the Las Vegas Raiders and the NFL. He previously worked for 12 years at the San Francisco Chronicle and also writes about boxing and mixed martial arts. Follow Vic on Twitter @VicTafur
