Denver Broncos: Will Von Miller Get to Tom Brady on Sunday?

In two games against the New England Patriots last season, Von Miller was able to total only one tackle between the two contests. Miller’s ineffectiveness against Tom Brady and the Patriots offense was no doubt a part of what contributed to the Denver Broncos inability to keep pace in both those games.

This Sunday, the Broncos will face New England yet again; this time with a hall of fame quarterback and a cast-free Miller who will both be loaded for bear.

Against a weak New England secondary, Peyton Manning should get his fill of success, yet one of the glaring questions will be if the Denver defense can disrupt Brady’s passing game. A large part of that responsibility will fall on Miller, who is really the only significant threat the Broncos have a the linebacker position until D.J. Williams finishes serving a six game suspension.

Miller has already gotten to the quarterback three times so far in the season, though all of them came in the first two games. Against the Houston Texans and Oakland Raiders, Miller got on the board with eight tackles but was unable to take the quarterback down.

While it’s significant to even just get pressure on the opposing quarterback, an early sack against Brady would go a long way in boosting Miller’s confidence, while at the same time causing Brady to perhaps rush his throws and overlook (or overuse) Rob Gronkowski and Aaron Hernandez.

Look for Miller to be a factor in this game as Jack Del Rio will undoubtedly be focused on pressuring Brady and slowing down the Patriots passing game. If Miller can help make that happen, Manning will take care of the rest.