The Washington Commanders have officially signed veteran linebacker and pass-rusher Von Miller. Here are five things to know about the future Hall of Famer.
1. He was a multi-sport athlete in high school.
It shouldn't be a surprise that Miller is among the long list of future Hall of Famers who had exceptional high school careers in several sports.
Miller attended DeSoto High School in Texas, where he was a member of the Eagles' football team and ran track. He dominated his competition and was rated as a four-star recruit in the last two seasons. He wrapped up his junior year by recording 37 tackles, seven sacks and 12 quarterback hurries. As a senior, he racked up 76 tackles with six sacks and 14 tackles for loss, which helped him become the District 8-5A MVP.
Miller was just as impressive with DeSoto's track and field team. He competed in a variety of events, recording personal bests of 14.38 seconds in the 100-meter hurdles, 12.65 meters in the triple jump and 37.24 meters in the javelin throw.
Obviously, Miller stuck with football and chose Texas A&M over Florida, LSU, Oklahoma and Texas Tech, but the athleticism he showed during his track and field career has still been helpful on the field.
2. He's a self-proclaimed nerd.
Miller isn't the stereotypical football player who only lives and breathes football. That's certainly a key part of his life, but he has other interests as well, including video games, books and the Discovery Channel. He even described himself as "a geek" in a 2016 ESPN article.
"I had glasses, I had a ducktail, my mom would dress me funny," **Miller said.** "I was smart, I was good at video games, I read books, I watched the Discovery Channel. I was good at sports, but I was a geek."
Earlier that year, Miller went into further detail on his nerdy interests. In an article from The Players' Tribune titled, "Nerd," Miller discussed what it was like to be a skinny kid wearing glasses and trying to play football in one of the biggest high school hubs for the sport in the country. It includes commentary from some of his best friends who said he looked like Snoopy from "Charlie Brown" with his RecSpecs. They talked about how Miller was interested in sci-fi films and would prefer to watch National Geographic before the AFC Championship game.
"Biggest game of this dude's life coming up, and he's talking about the Dodo Bird," said Damontre Moore, former Miami Dolphins defensive end. "Then he put on a documentary about coral reefs. He was so adamant about it."
**Check out the article** yourself for a better look at Miller's take on being a nerd.
3. He was a star with the Aggies.
Miller was inducted into the Texas A&M Athletic Hall of Fame in 2017, just six years after he finished his career with them. It must have been an easy decision for the school, because there haven't been many players like Miller in program history.
In the four years that he played for the Aggies, Miller was named an All-American twice and earned the Butkus Award for being the top college linebacker in the country in 2010. He recorded 17 sacks in 2009, which ranked second all-time in program history for a single season. He had 33 for his career, which is still the fifth most all-time.
Despite suffering a high ankle sprain in 2010, which forced him to miss six games, Miller still finished with 10.5 sacks and 17.5 tackles for loss. That led to him being named First Team All-Big 12, wrapping up a career that included 181 total tackles, an interception, five pass breakups and seven forced fumbles.
4. He's still one of the quickest pass-rushers in the league.
Let's state the obvious: Miller is at a different point in his career than he was with the Denver Broncos, when he had multiple Pro Bowls and double-digit sack seasons. He turned 36 this year, which makes him one of the oldest active players in the league. His role, whatever it will be with the Commanders in 2025, is not going to be what it was with the Broncos.
However, Miller still has plenty of juice left to be impactful in the league, and a couple of stats from last season proved it.
Miller, who most recently played for the Buffalo Bills, recorded an average pass-rush get-off of .69 seconds, according to Next Gen Stats, making it the quickest number in the league. That means it was quicker than Myles Garrett and Nick Bosa (both tied for second with .70).
Miller recorded six sacks in 2024, which is tied for the third lowest total in his career, but he also proved that he can still harass opposing quarterbacks. He generated a pressure rate of 17.9%, which ranked fifth among pass-rushers with at least 150 pass attempts.
Miller isn't likely to be a starter for the Commanders in 2025, but the coaching staff has proven that they can get the most out of a player's skill set. As long as he is put in the right role, Miller can still be effective.
5. He's one of the most prolific sack artists in NFL history.
Most people who watch football know that Miller has been a highly productive player for 14 years, but let's go over just how good he has been throughout his career.
Miller has recorded at least eight sacks in nine seasons. He has 129.5 in his career, which is not only the most among active players but is also 16th on the all-time official list. If he were to get another six sacks, like he did in 2024, then he would move to 13th on the list. He needs eight to tie Richard Dent and John Randle for 10th all-time.
So, it makes sense for the Commanders to add a player with that kind of resume. Who knows if Miller will be enough to make Washington a Super Bowl favorite, but he certainly raises the roster's talent level. He would have ranked third on the team in sacks last season while playing just 279 snaps. He obviously won't be a long-term fixture for the team, but for 2025, he will play a key role in getting the Commanders back to the playoffs.
