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Commanders adding ex-Super Bowl MVP shouldn't move the needle
Von Miller (40) warms up before a game against the Denver Broncos in an AFC wild-card game at Highmark Stadium. Gregory Fisher-Imagn Images

Commanders adding former Super Bowl MVP shouldn't move the needle

The Washington Commanders added a former Super Bowl MVP Wednesday night. That still may not push the championship contender to the top. 

EDGE Von Miller confirmed he's planning to sign with the Commanders in an X post. The Associated Press' Stephen Whyno reported both parties agreed to a one-year deal. 

Miller leads active players in sacks (129.5), per Pro Football Reference. However, he's joining Washington after a rocky tenure with the Buffalo Bills. 

Miller signed a six-year, $120M deal with the Bills before the 2022 season. He would record eight sacks and 12 QB hits in 11 games in his first season with the team. The edge-rusher's season ended after tearing his right ACL in November 2022.

Miller hasn't looked the same since. He recorded six sacks and 11 QB hits in 25 regular-season games over the past two seasons. The Bills subsequently released him in March.

The Commanders may be hoping Miller shows why he's a future Hall of Famer. 

The eight-time Pro Bowler won two Super Bowls in his first 11 seasons with the Denver Broncos and Los Angeles Rams. He had 2.5 sacks and forced two fumbles in a 24-10 Super Bowl 50 win over the Carolina Panthers, winning the game's MVP. 

Miller hasn't looked like a postseason performer over the past two seasons.

He played just 94 snaps in five playoff games during this span, via Pro Football Focus. When the Rams won Super Bowl LVI during the 2021 season, the 2011 first-round pick lined up on 177 snaps in four postseason contests. 

Adding Miller, 36, makes the oldest team in the NFL even older. The Commanders' average age is 27.7, according to Spotrac.

Some of the team's older players are on defense. The unit features linebacker Bobby Wagner (35) and cornerback Marshon Lattimore (29).

Washington's defense already seemed shaky after last season's 55-23 NFC Championship Game loss to the Philadelphia Eagles. With another fading star in Miller, could it become a liability in another big game?

Clark Dalton

Dalton is a 2022 journalism graduate of the University of Texas at Austin. He gained experience in sports media over the past seven years — from live broadcasting and creating short films to podcasting and producing. In college, he wrote for The Daily Texan. He loves sports and enjoys hiking, kayaking and camping.

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