They say greatness recognizes greatness, and Denver Broncos linebacker Von Miller has certainly had enough opportunities to recognize that of the New England Patriots.
With his eighth career meeting with the Patriots (two in the playoffs) looming on Sunday, Miller praised Tom Brady, Rob Gronkowski and Bill Belichick in a post for The Players' Tribune, deeming them the toughest he's ever faced at their respective positions.
On Wednesday, Brady compared Miller to three-time Defensive Player of the Year Lawrence Taylor, and it seems the respect is mutual. Miller calls Brady's pre-snap vision "the best I've ever seen, bar none," adding, "You can disguise your look all you want, but he's still able to move guys around and forecast what's coming."
Gronkowski is on injured reserve and won't play Sunday in Denver, but Miller deems him the league's most dominant tight end, comparing him to the Cleveland Cavaliers' LeBron James.
He went on to credit Belichick for his ability to repeatedly surprise his opponents:
Some of the packages we see from the Patriots, I've never seen before on a football field.
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. 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.
Not all of those Miller recognized were New England foes, however. At offensive tackle -- the position he most regularly does battle with -- Washington Redskins anchor Trent Williams got the nod, though the two typically line up on opposite ends of the line. Miller says Williams "has that swag about him that makes him almost more like a defensive player," as he plays in "attack mode" like few tackles do.
Miller also picked a running back for his list, going a bit off the board with Jacksonville Jaguars back Chris Ivory. The main reason? Ivory delivered one of the hardest hits Miller has ever absorbed, knocking out one of the linebacker's contacts in a 2014 meeting between the Broncos and Jets.
"Ivory causes harm, bro," Miller writes. "He almost never runs out of bounds to preserve himself. He lays his body on the line for his teammates."
Lucky for Miller, Ivory missed the Broncos-Jaguars meeting in Week 13, while he has to face Williams only once every four years. Denver hosted Washington in 2013, so the Broncos will head to D.C. in 2017.
Not so lucky regarding the Patriots though, who come to Denver again Sunday and will also be on the 2017 docket, regardless of how either team finishes. It's worked out OK for Miller however: He has 7.5 sacks in seven games against New England, tallying 2.5 and an interception in last season's AFC Championship Game.
-- David DeChant