Von Miller was Denver Broncos’ irresistible force

Six days before kickoff, Broncos defensive coordinator Wade Phillips was asked about the connection between Carolina quarterback Cam Newton and Denver outside linebacker Von Miller.

Miller spent plenty of up-close-and-personal time with the under-siege Newton in the Broncos’ 24-10 win over the Panthers in Super Bowl 50 at Levi’s Stadium.

Miller collected six tackles, 2.5 sacks and forced two fumbles to become the fourth linebacker to be named a Super Bowl MVP.

How, exactly, does a team win a title after managing 11 first downs, converting 1 of 14 third downs and gaining 194 yards, the fewest for a Super Bowl-winning team?

In the first quarter, Miller whizzed past right tackle Mike Remmers, slammed into Newton and forced a fumble that defensive end Malik Jackson recovered in the end zone to give Denver a 10-0 lead.

In the fourth quarter, as the Broncos were clinging to a 16-10 lead with four minutes left, Miller again abused Remmers and swatted the ball away from Newton at Carolina’s 16-yard line.

If I could cut this award up and give to (linebacker) DeMarcus (Ware) and (defensive end Derek) Wolfe,” Miller said, “that’s what I would do.

The Broncos tied a Super Bowl record with seven sacks, forced four turnovers and limited the Panthers, who scored an NFL-high 500 points, to 10 points for the first time since Oct. 30, 2014.

On Sunday, the Broncos’ defense allowed quarterback Peyton Manning to win his second Super Bowl championship, a title he said he was going to celebrate by “drinking a lot of Budweiser.”