Two friends and NFL superstars moved to Colorado Springs last offseason. They wanted to train together, prod each other and labor at high altitude so both could return to the rare air they reached during the 2015 season. Both were rehabbing from different injuries that had cast their respective futures into doubt. Both were playing for teams that held playoff aspirations, even long-shot Super Bowl hopes. And both were confronting the same question, which loomed like the mountains outside the window as they plotted twin, parallel comebacks: Could they return to peak form?
Von Miller was still a Denver Bronco. But the patella tendon he dislocated in his left ankle had cost him both time and shine. Memories of the championship run that vaulted him to superstardom had begun to fade. In the four seasons since Denver won Super Bowl 50—with Miller netting the game’s MVP honors—he remained an elite pass rusher, registering 14.5 sacks in 2018 alone. Still, that tally dropped to 8.0 in ’19, his second-lowest total in 10 seasons, the last of which he had missed in its entirety. The Broncos had returned to the playoffs since their title.
Odell Beckham Jr. was still a Cleveland Brown. But the ACL he had torn in his left knee had cost him all but seven games in 2020. Memories of his spectacular ’15 with the Giants—96 receptions, 1,450 receiving yards, 13 touchdowns—had been replaced by a run of solid-but-no-longer-spectacular production after a trade to Cleveland.
