CANTON, Ohio — The current Bronco who would-be-a-Hall of Famer stopped and spent some time with the bust of his childhood hero.
Von Miller wears No. 58 because of Derrick Thomas.
Thomas is a Hall of Famer with a 126.5 sacks (17th all time) in 11 seasons before his career and life were tragically cut short.
If Miller hung ‘em up today, he may have already done enough to join Thomas in the Hall of Fame. Miller’s otherworldly performance in the 2015 postseason, plus his 98.0 regular-season sacks in only eight years, may have already earned his place in the HOF’s bronze bust gallery he visited with his Broncos teammates Wednesday.
"No, I haven’t done enough," Miller said. "I’m not even halfway yet. I got a long ways."
Yes, but his dominant performance in Super Bowl 50 that all-but-single-handedly gave the Broncos their third world championship.
"We need another one," he said. "We need a couple more. A couple more will probably do it."
Still, Miller more than any other current Bronco had to quietly contemplate as he toured the bronzed bust room what his sculpture would look like one day.
"I just stay grounded with my dreams and aspirations of becoming one of these guys," Miller said. "But it takes a long time, a lot of hard work."
Hall of Fame player/Broncos coach
The Broncos’ party that toured the Pro Football Hall of Fame museum here Wednesday evening included two Hall of Famers.
General manager John Elway was one. Offensive line coach Mike Munchak was the other. Munchak was a 9-time Pro Bowl guard for the Houston Oilers.
"It’s crazy. You hear stories and you hear about him and all the success he had and now you’re here and you see what he’s done, it’s neat, man," said Broncos’ left tackle Garett Bolles, who climbed a couple ladder rungs to pose with Munchak’s top-shelf bust. "It’s really cool to see that. Grateful to know him and grateful to play for him."
Hurry, Vic
Vic Fangio won’t head coach his first NFL regular-season game until he after turns 61, so he better stack up the wins quickly if he’s to one day become a Hall of Famer.
"I just want a team with a Denver Broncos name on it winning something special," he said. "That’s all. I don’t need to be in the Hall of Fame."
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