Magical offseason waiting for Miller

MVP has big payday ahead

SAN FRANCISCO — On top of his game and now the world, Von Miller’s docket is quickly filling up.

A parade. Lots of parties. A princely payday.

“I was just talking to Coach (Gary) Kubiak, I was asking if you could make the plane do backflips on the way home,” Miller said Monday after accepting the Super Bowl MVP trophy from NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell.

“It’s definitely going to be a magical week for us. I am looking forward to spending time with my teammates going on tour.”

It should be a magical offseason for Miller, who led Denver’s dominating defense to aof Cam Newton and the Carolina Panthers.

Thanks to Miller, GM John Elway earned a third Lombardi Trophy for team owner Pat Bowlen to go with the two he won as his quarterback in the 1990s. Bowlen is battling Alzheimer’s and didn’t make the trip to Super Bowl 50.

“We’ll take that trophy over to Pat this week and let him cherish it,” Elway said.

Denver’s throwing a parade for the champs today, and Miller should be leading the way.

Then the players will take their final physicals and head into an off season that includes a trip to the White House where receiver Demaryius Thomas will get to personally thank the president for commuting his mother’s prison sentence.

Everyone’s expecting a send-off for Peyton Manning, and Miller’s Super Bowl co-stars Danny Trevathan and Malik Jackson are sure to draw high interest in free agency.

Miller also is set to become an unrestricted free agent, but Elway will use the franchise tag on him if he has to, guaranteeing Miller close to $15million next season.

Miller, who overcame a drug suspension and torn knee ligament in 2013, was the very first draft pick by Elway, who calls him the best player on the planet.

“He wins the football game for us,” Elway said in the jubilant locker room Sunday night.

Miller’s mind isn’t on money just yet. It’s the non-financial fruits of success that he’s soaking in.

“The Super Bowl MVP is special, but the Super Bowl ring is something that I will keep with me for the rest of my life. I’ll be able to be with my brothers for eternity,” Miller said. “I’ll be able to be with those guys for 100 years from now and that’s truly beautiful.”

DEVELOPMENTS

Betting record set: Super Bowl fans bet a record $132.5 million at Nevada sportsbooks on the 50th version of the game. The Nevada Gaming Control Board said in its preliminary estimate on Monday that Nevada’s 194 sports books kept about 10.1 percent of the wagers for a total win of $13.3 million when Denver upset 5.5-point favorite Carolina.

The previous record of $119.4 million was set two years ago when Seattle beat Denver 43-8.

Viewership down from 2015: Setting television viewership records with the Super Bowl has become almost routine, but this year’s average of 111.9 million viewers is down fromthe past two years.

That makes Sunday’s game the third most watched event in U.S. television history, the Nielsen company said Monday. Last year’s down-to-the-wire contest between New England and Seattle keeps the record with 114.4million viewers.