Von Miller and 6 Veteran Additions That Boost NFL Contenders

The NFL is a young man's game. Sure, quarterbacks often play into their mid-30s or even early-40s, but if a player is the wrong side of 30 in most other positions, he's beyond his prime. Thirty years old is considered ancient for running backs.

However, just because a player has more candles on his birthday cake doesn't mean he's forgotten how to play football.

At 36, Von Miller might not be the player he was a decade ago, but he logged a sack every 46.5 snaps last season. By weight of comparison, Dallas Cowboys superstar Micah Parsons had a sack every 58 snaps.

This doesn't make Miller better than Parsons—not in 2025. But it does show the veteran has something left in the tank. The Washington Commanders appear to agree and signed the eight-time Pro Bowler on Thursday.

Miller's not the only big name closer to the end of his career than the beginning who signed with a contender this offseason. When you're in "win now" mode, 2027 doesn't matter; it's all about living in the now.

So, while the players listed here may have the NFL equivalent of an AARP card, they also have a chance of making a sizable dent for a contending team in 2025.

Or even a trip to Super Bowl LX.

Edge Von Miller, Washington Commanders

AP Photo/Matt Slocum

Over 15 years in the NFL, Von Miller has amassed 129.5 sacks. No active player has more.

Five years after the eight-time Pro Bowler and MVP of Super Bowl 50 decides to call it a career, he will be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

However, that countdown will have a wait at least a little longer. Per ESPN's John Keim, Miller has agreed to terms on a one-year deal to join the Washington Commanders.

As Keim noted, while Washington's sack numbers as a whole last year were solid, the team struggled in some areas:

"The Commanders' pass rush recorded 43 sacks, 11th best in the NFL last season. However, there were holes in their pass rush: In the four-man rush, Washington ranked 26th with 22 sacks; and in the fourth quarter, the Commanders were 30th with five sacks. That's partly why quarterbacks posted a fourth-quarter QBR of 74.8 against Washington, fourth highest in the league."

It's been a while since Miller had a truly gonzo season—his last year with double-digit sacks came in 2018. But he had eight sacks as recently as 2022 and racked up six last year in Buffalo in just 279 snaps.

The only player for the Commanders who had 10 sacks last year (edge-rusher Dante Fowler Jr.) is with the rival Dallas Cowboys. The team's No. 2 man in sacks (Frankie Luvu) is an off-ball linebacker.

Simply put, a Commanders team with Super Bowl aspirations needed to add some pop off the edge.

QB Aaron Rodgers, Pittsburgh Steelers

AP Photo/Matt Freed

You had to know this guy would be in here.

The "will he or won't he?" saga between four-time MVP quarterback Aaron Rodgers and the Pittsburgh Steelers was one of the dominant storylines this summer. But he is now in the Steel City on a one-year, $13.65 million contract.

Rodgers told reporters he's happy to be with a franchise as storied as the Steelers after two disappointing years with the New York Jets:

"I just like the newness of it all. I'm excited about being in such a great franchise with a Hall of Fame head coach. It's fun, it's a good quarterback room, it's good leadership in the locker room, great fanbase. I'm just excited to get back out there and finish it the right way."

The Steelers are no doubt excited as well—hopeful that improved quarterback play can not only get them into the playoffs but also earn the team its first postseason win since 2016.

It's been a while since we saw Rodgers play at an MVP level, though. Last year with the Jets, he was 28th in QBR, four slots behind Steelers quarterback Russell Wilson. But he still threw for almost 3,900 yards, tossed 28 touchdown passes against just 11 interceptions and was a respectable 12th in the league in passing yards per game.

Pittsburgh isn't asking Rodgers to carry the team, but with even a slight improvement over his time in New York, his Steelers could be a 10- or 11-win team that is very much in the thick of the AFC playoff chase.

DT Jonathan Allen, Minnesota Vikings

AP Photo/Matt Patterson

The Minnesota Vikings are coming off a dream season that ended in nightmarish fashion. They went 14-3 in 2024 before getting dumped out of the playoffs in the Wild Card Round.

Now, there are some big changes in the Twin Cities. There's a new starting quarterback in second-year pro J.J. McCarthy, new faces on the offensive line and in the defensive backfield, and a new big man in the middle on defense in Jonathan Allen.

The 30-year-old's 2024 season was marred by injury, but he has shown in the past he can be an impactful force in the middle.

As Warren Ludford wrote for the Daily Norseman, playing on a loaded front that includes tackle Javon Hargrave and edge-rushers Jonathan Greenard and Andrew Van Ginkel could be a dream scenario for Allen:

"There are a few reasons for optimism regarding Allen’s performance this season with the Vikings. The first is that Allen will have a better supporting cast along the defensive line so offenses won’t be able to focus on him as much and that may lead to his being in a better position to pressure the quarterback. The second reason is that Allen is going from a 4-3 to a 3-4 base front and I would not be surprised if Brian Flores employed a five-man front on a significant percentage of snaps. That makes it nearly impossible for Allen to be double-teamed and should help his production."

Last year, the Vikings amassed 49 sacks—tied for fourth-most in the league. On paper, the defensive front is even more formidable, and that should make the likes of Caleb Williams, Jared Goff and Jordan Love plenty nervous.

WR Davante Adams, Los Angeles Rams

AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill

Davante Adams has been on the move quite a bit over the past year so.

The 32-year-old kicked off the 2024 season with the Las Vegas Raiders, only to be reunited with Aaron Rodgers in a midseason trade with the New York Jets. Then, after being released by the Jets in March, he signed a two-year, $44 million deal with the Los Angeles Rams.

While appearing on The Insiders, Rams wideout Puka Nacua said he's excited to learn all he can from a receiver who has been named to six Pro Bowls:

"It's definitely gonna be different. Davante, as soon as he stepped into the facility has been fantastic. The ability to learn from another all-time great has been -- I feel like I'm stealing -- I'm like a kid in the candy store. I've had Matthew Stafford, Sean McVay, Cooper Kupp and now Davante Adams. My life is pretty good, I can't complain too much. It's gonna be fun. We signed Tutu (Atwell) back. We've got some speed, we got a bunch of young guys who are excited to play. (No.) 17 is gonna lead the way for us, and it's gonna be fantastic to be out there on the football field with him."

Adams, who will turn 33 on Christmas Eve, may have lost a step, but he topped 1,000 receiving yards and scored eight times in last year's split season and hasn't failed to hit that benchmark since he played in just 12 games in 2019.

Adams and Nacua are one of the better one-two punches at wide receiver in the NFL. And as things stand, the Rams look like the favorites in the NFC West.

Edge Joey Bosa, Buffalo Bills

AP Photo/Maria Lysaker

There was a time when Joey Bosa appeared destined for superstardom. The third overall pick in the 2016 draft logged 10.5 sacks in his first season and brought home Defensive Rookie of the Year honors. The following season, he one-upped that, tallying 12 sacks.

There have been two more double-digit sack seasons since then, but there have also been injuries—lots of injuries.

Over the past three seasons, Bosa has missed a whopping 23 games, and that lack of availability led to the 30-year-old signing a relatively modest one-year, $12.6 million pact with the Buffalo Bills.

His tenure in Buffalo got off to a rocky start when he suffered a calf injury that wiped out much of OTAs. Head coach Sean McDermott conceded that start wasn't ideal, but he expressed confidence that the team will have Bosa when it counts:

"Durability, availability are key ties to our roster. We basically look ahead in terms of what he's doing now, which is getting himself the treatment that he needs and he’s working hard at it. That's all he can control right now. We get him back when we get him back, probably at this point, training camp. We're gonna do the best job we can--and I know he is as well--and just take it one day at a time."

The Bills have a quality young edge-rusher on the roster in Gregory Rousseau, but they didn't have a player with more than eight sacks in 2024 and one of the three who had more than three (Von Miller) is gone.

With Buffalo on a likely collision course with the likes of Patrick Mahomes and/or Lamar Jackson in the AFC playoffs, it needs to do better than last year's 39 sacks.

And to do that, the team needs a healthy Bosa on the field.

Can we interest you in some extra-large rolls of bubble wrap?

TE Evan Engram, Denver Broncos

AP Photo/David Zalubowski

Two years ago, Evan Engram was one of the most productive pass-catchers in the NFL and not just among tight ends. His 114 receptions ranked fourth in the league and were more than every AFC wide receiver not named Tyreek Hill.

However, like so many things in Jacksonville a year ago, his 2024 campaign was a mess, with eight missed games and just 47 catches for 365 yards and a single touchdown.

Still, the Broncos saw something they liked in the 30-year-old, giving him $23 million over two years to fill the "Joker" role in Sean Payton's offense.

The head coach outlined what attracted the Broncos to the former first-round pick:

"The vision was pretty clear. Obviously, he's someone that we feel like can run and give us a passing threat on third down and [in the] red zone. I think he has good body control, and I think he is really good when he gets the ball into his hands. His run-after-the-catch numbers, statistical-wise, have been good."

The Broncos (and young quarterback Bo Nix) were pleasant surprises last season, winning 10 games and making the playoffs. But if Denver is going to take the next step in 2025, it needed to improve the passing weapons available to Nix, with the waters muddying quickly beyond Courtland Sutton.

The 6'3" 240-pound Engram gives the quarterback a big-bodied target over the middle and in the red zone; a player who can create mismatches.

And if the Broncos are going to somehow stop Kansas City's decade of dominance in the AFC West, they need every weapon they can get.