Von Miller sends wine bottles to every player in AFC West

Von Miller is in the Christmas spirit a little early this year, with an expensive gift to a wide swath of NFL players.

Von Miller is having another terrific season, with 12.5 sacks and 49 total tackles in 11 games. He’s a dark horse candidate for NFL MVP, and surely a top candidate for Defensive Player of the Year, as he is justifying the six-year, $114.5 million contract he signed during the offseason.

The calendar flipping to December is a sort of unofficial start to the Christmas season, and Miller is already in the holiday spirit. According to Nicki Jhabvala of the Denver Post, Miller has sent every player in the AFC West a custom bottle of wine. That’s nearly 300 bottles of wine for starters, backups, practice squad players, players on injured reserve and anyone else, by Pro Football Talk’s estimation, with a thank you note attached to each.

Here’s what Miller’s attached thank you note says.

"It is an honor and a privilege to take the field and compete with you twice a year. We are so fortunate to have this opportunity to fulfill our childhood dreams of playing in the NFL. The blood, sweat, aches and pains, and endless hours spent watching film are a testament to the love and dedication we have for this game.So take a moment, reflect on all your successes, and enjoy your accomplishment. Appreciate those who have helped you get this far, and start working towards your next childhood dream.Thank you for helping to make our game great!-Von Miller"

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This is a very nice gesture on Miller’s part, and something he can obviously afford to do financially without issue. But the cynical side of me thinks it may go beyond simply inspiring good will and holiday cheer, into an outright effort to soften up his most common opponents.