Highlights from the Broncos' Friday media sessions
Broncos OLB Von Miller
“I’ve got an autographed [LB] Luke Kuechly helmet right now at my house hanging up on my mantle right by all my game balls. I’m a fan of football. I’m a fan of elite players, and Carolina, they have them. From [QB] Cam [Newton] to [LB] Thomas Davis to Luke Kuechly to [DT Kawann] Short and all the guys on the inside and the [defensive] tackle, they’re loaded. That’s part of the reason they’re here in the Super Bowl.”
On if there is a friendly rivalry with Newton
“I wouldn’t even call it a rivalry. If I played quarterback, I could see it. But I like Cam Newton. That’s one of my favorite quarterbacks. [Broncos QB] Peyton [Manning] is obviously my favorite quarterback, but other than that, it’s Cam. I don’t think there’s another quarterback that’s ever played the game the way he does, especially the way his personality is on the field. I’m just a big fan of everything that he has going for him. He’s a huge role model. If he played defense, he probably would’ve gotten $220 million dollars because he can probably rush the passer and drop back and do safety and all that stuff, too. I’m a big fan. It’s not really the 1 vs. 2 that the media tries to play out to be. He’s a `great quarterback.”
On if it’s unfair that Newton is being criticized for his personality
“I mean, what, dancing after making big plays? I mean, I do the same thing. If I was a quarterback, I’d probably be doing the exact same thing that he’s doing.”
Broncos defensive coordinator Wade Phillips
“They asked me if I had seen a quarterback like Cam Newton. There isn’t one like him. I haven’t seen one like him. None of us have. He’s a tremendous talent. He’s put it all together. I’m sure he’s going to be MVP of the league this year. It’s another big challenge for us. You go from [Pittsburgh QB Ben] Roethlisberger to [New England QB] Tom Brady, think it won’t get any tougher and now you’re going against Cam Newton."
On if playing Roethlisberger twice helps the preparation for Newton
“No. Ben’s not the runner. They’re not going to run the ball with Ben Roethlisberger on the three-yard line on a power play with him. It’s a lot different as far as—the drop back stuff and being able to throw the ball the way he can throw the ball is similar, but him being able to run—and it’s called runs. It’s options and those kinds of things. It’s not just quarterback going back and running with the football. A lot of their offense is him being able to run the football. They call plays where he’s going to run the ball. Most team’s don’t do that.”
On if Kansas City QB Alex Smith is an appropriate comparison to Newton
“No. Alex is more drop-back and just runs with the ball. He finds a seam if nothing’s there. Cam actually tries to stay in the pocket a little bit more overall. You say he runs with it and he does. If there’s a lot of pressure on him, he’ll run with it out of the pocket on drop back, but he’s more called run plays. Those are the plays that he makes yards on. He can, obviously, get out of the pocket and make a big play, but he tries to throw it in the pocket. That’s what has made him a better quarterback all along. He’s learned to be able to do that rather than just being a quarterback that runs with it.”
I said it before as a Panther fan and I’ll say it again, the Broncos have some terrific people and terrific fans. It’s nice to play a team and deal with a fan base that is not composed of cheap shot jerks.