Von Miller Holds Charity Event, Confident On A Deal Soon
DENVER (AP) - Von Miller declared just 12 hours after winning the Super Bowl MVP award that his contract talks this offseason were "going to be a peaceful thing" that he wouldn't fret over.
Nothing has changed his mind.
The star linebacker said during an appearance at his charity event Wednesday night at Sports Authority Field at Mile High he's optimistic a long-term contract with the Denver Broncos will come together "any day" even though there "hasn't been much movement."
It's the eternal optimist in him.
"That's just the mind-set I have," Miller said before handing out hundreds of eyeglasses to underprivileged youth as part of his "Von's Vision" foundation.
"I'm optimistic about it. I don't have any hard feelings about it. I'm training, grinding, staying in shape and whenever the time comes, I'll be ready to go," Miller added.
Miller hasn't signed his $14.129 million tag while his agent, Joby Branion, seeks a contract that would make his client the NFL's highest-paid defensive player.
That distinction now belongs to Miami defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh, whose six-year, $114.375 million contract includes nearly $60 million in guaranteed money and is worth $19.062 million annually.
General manager John Elway recently said there's only been one offer and one counter-offer and that contract talks would resume after the upcoming draft. He also said he hopes it doesn't go down to the July 15 deadline as it did with receiver Demaryius Thomas last summer.
"I would hope not but we'll see," Elway said at his pre-draft news conference last week. "I think that it's not nearly as bad as people have it portrayed at being out there. I know what I think of Von Miller and I know what this organization thinks of Von Miller. He is very important to us, and we're going to work our tails off to try and get something done with him."
Miller struck a similar tone in his comments, saying he expects to be signing a deal soon and returning to his teammates at Broncos headquarters.
"Yeah, it's still all positive. There's really not anything negative about any of this stuff," Miller said. "Of course I want to be there with my guys but I feel like me and my teammates, we've put ourselves in great situations for this offseason. And just taking it one day at a time. There are not really any negative feelings about it."
Miller said he hasn't considered whether he'd sign his franchise tag, which is fully guaranteed, while talks continue on a long-term contract.
He said he'll leave the business side of football to his agent - "that's just not my field. My field is getting after the quarterback, keeping my locker room together."
While skipping the team's voluntary offseason program, Miller has been competing on ABC's "Dancing With the Stars."
Asked if the moves he's learning on the dance floor will make him a better football player, Miller retorted, "I think it will make my sack dances a whole lot better for sure. I practice them almost every single day. I think I'll have some exciting stuff in the fall."
Miller said it was good to get a break and return to his Denver home and see teammates T.J. Ward, Aqib Talib, Cyrus Gray and Keyvon Webster on Wednesday. He said he misses working out with his teammates.
"It's hard not being around my guys," Miller said. "I haven't seen those guys in two or three months and we had a special season. I spent every day with those guys but business is business."
Miller said his recent comments that the good guy won when cornerback Josh Norman signed a contract with Washington wasn't a jab at Elway and had "nothing to do with my situation."
Asked what he thought of the moves Elway has made this offseason, Miller said, "I mean, he's been doing a great job all the way up to this point. We just won a Super Bowl. We were in a Super Bowl two years ago. So, our front office, they've made championship decisions to put us in the situation that we are now."
Von's Vision welcomed nearly 300 Denver-area children ages 5 to 18 for free eyeglasses.
"I'm here to make glasses cool again," said Miller, who's worn glasses since second grade and owns several hundred pair.
LINK: Von's Vision
- By ARNIE STAPLETON, AP Sports Writer
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