Is Von Miller Finally Stepping Up?

A&M's returning sack leader (with a paltry 3.5 sacks to his credit) is apparently showing progress on and off the field, according to Coach Sherman. Miller has slimmed down to a lean 214 lbs on his 6'3 frame, and is taking care of business on the field and in the classroom. He has organized his life, making sure his apartment and his locker are clean, pleasing both Sherman and his mother. His newfound maturity is a good sign that he may be ready to take on a leadership role on our defense this Fall, which is a welcome sight. After the problems we had last year on defense, we need someone for the team to rally around, and Miller might be that guy.  I'm not so sure about his playing weight, though.

While Antonio Armstrong made All-American while playing at that size, I can't help but be a little bit concerned that Miller might be too light. 214 is a really light weight to be playing at when you're taking on OTs all day; that is smaller than some of our wide receivers. At 214, Miller will be lighter than many of the fullbacks he faces, especially when teams go with 22 and 31 personnel in jumbo packages.

I can understand the need for speed on our defense, and I'm certainly in favor of our players getting leaner and faster, but I don't want DEs below 220, even in our hybrid "jack" position, where Miller will basically be shifting between WLB in our 4-3 and 4-2-5 and OLB in our 3-4 and 3-3-5 sets. 214 lbs is really a size you want your safeties playing at; it is too light for LB or DL.

I guess we'll just have to trust Sherman and Kines in this area, let them do their jobs, and wait and see what happens when the season begins.