ck, choosing to keep only quarterback Dan Orlovs

On a sweltering July afternoon in DeSoto, a sleepy suburb just outside of Dallas, the chicken farmer sweats through his Texas A&M T-shirt as he tends to two dozen of his feathered friends in the backyard of his parents home.Chickens, says Denver Broncos pass-rusher Von Miller, are dope.Despite the oppressive 100-degree heat here in Texas and increasingly heated contract negotiations with his team back in Denver, Miller, 27, is beaming like a proud papa. This chicken coop, which is no bigger than a tennis court, is the four-time Pro Bowlers happy place, his refuge from the spotlight that tends to follow a Super Bowl MVP with charisma to burn. Theres Miller on Dancing With the Stars and the Academy of Country Music Awards. Theres Miller, nude save for his ubiquitous eyewear and fur hat, in ESPN The Magazines Body Issue. Theres Miller at the White House, where the champs were feted by President Obama -- and this champ, at least, botched the greeting.I thought I just would, like, get a handshake, but he kind of held my hand, and he talked about how cool he thought my shoes are and my dance moves, Miller explains. I was just in awe, thinking this is so surreal. Then he let go of my hand, and Im looking at my hand -- and I just tripped on the presidential rug.Its the story of my life, man, he adds with a chuckle.Its a funny anecdote, anyway, in a story about a self-described geek with a dream, one that was born in College Station, Texas, and, if the Aggie has his way, could soon be fully realized with a moneymaking poultry operation. Miller is in talks to potentially acquire a commercial chicken farm not far from his childhood home, but make no mistake, its passion, not profit, that powers Millers poultry game.Here, presumably, is ESPNs first Q&A with a chicken farmer. And check out the SportsCenter feature above for more.-----------ALIPOUR: How did you get into the poultry game?MILLER: Im not even gonna lie, man, it started off by taking an easy class in college. [Laughs.] My professor, Dr. [Morgan] Farnell, he wouldnt let it be an easy class -- you know how these electives can be, you just go in there and sleep through it. But he made it a point to make sure I knew my information. And then I learned about it and really enjoyed it. Before you know it, its my major.How passionate are you about this?Im very passionate, especially when it comes to humanely raised chickens. I take pride in healthy birds. You got all these other big-time commercial farms that raise, you know, 30,000 birds. Me, its a whole lot smaller operation, but its a lot of bang for the buck.When did you acquire your first flock?I started building this chicken farm my sophomore year in college. As I got a little bit more money, it just got bigger and bigger. I got my first flock like five years ago. And then this current flock right here, itll be three years in November. Its like family. Theyre more like pets. We got a lot of natural predators out here, so we got to watch them as well. Hawks took a couple of birds from us, and there are snakes and coyotes. But other than that, they really dont have to worry about much here at Miller Farms.Wait, lets back up. Where are the snakes at?We got a little creek.Were not visiting the creek.No.So, lets say Im a chicken. What kind of life can I expect on Von Millers farm?You can expect a long life, a lot of space, great food and youll get along with your teammates. All our chickens, they get along pretty well. Its just a great environment, like a great organization that you want to play for. For example, they get to go out in the pasture in the afternoon and the morning. I like to bring them out to natural, solid grass, their natural setting in which theyre picking up worms rather than the litter and the dirt we have in the coop. Thats what its all about for me. Its not about the commercial aspect of it. Of course, theres money involved, and being able to make a buck off of this is what makes everything go, but thats not at the foundation at Miller Farms. Its about happy, humanely raised chickens.Should I expect my owner to eat me?Im not out here to eat the birds. Now, the eggs, thats a different story. Oh, yeah, I eat eggs all day [laughs]. I think you can taste the difference between a pasteurized egg and a commercial egg.How many eggs do they produce?Weve got 10 [chickens] laying eggs, so about 20 eggs a day. We take them in the house, wash them off, put them in storage. My mom [Gloria], she has a whole system. Shes really the mastermind behind the eggs. So its really like a family operation for me and my little brother [Vince], my mom and my dad [Von]. It was something that I brought home and they just ran with it.Are the birds cool with you taking their eggs and eating them?Oh, yeah, theyre cool. I dont even think they know whats going on.Do the birds have personalities?Yeah, they definitely have personalities, especially the rooster. The rooster is the man. Hes the leader of the pack. Hes watching out for everybody. I call him Peyton. We had five of them originally -- he was the toughest one out of the whole flock. Its only one of him, so hes just chillin around. You know, if its you with 30 females, youll be pretty chill, too. But they all got personalities. I thought about creating a little TV show for the birds. You know, you have a celebrity do voice-over for the chickens, like, Mine, mine, mine, get away! [Laughs.] But if you just sit and watch them, they all work as a team. They find food. One will alert the other one to come over here. Its pretty dope.So when did it become an insult to call somebody a chicken?I think when we were little kids, you know? Oh, youre a chicken. Youre afraid. When you think about chickens, you think about them being cowards and, you know, running away. Thats what it looks like. But when you actually look at them, especially the rooster, hes one of the toughest guys in the animal kingdom.So, what happens if I call you a chicken?[Laughs.] Im going to be OK with it.Hey, Von. Youre a chicken.I mean, I understand it. Im a chicken. Chickens are dope.Rocky trained by chasing chickens. Is that Hollywood fiction?No, its not Hollywood fiction. I tried it. But, you know, Id rather chase quarterbacks. Chickens are way more athletic than the most athletic quarterback you could probably go get.What do your teammates think about all this?When they first started hearing about me raising chickens, they thought it was a joke, another one of Vons tricks. But once you really get to know me and where Im from, then you get it. And when you come see my farm and the way I raise my chickens, you get to know me a lot better as well.I know youre in talks to acquire a commercial chicken farm. Whats the next step in your poultry empire.I want to create a different lane. Youve got all these big companies that do it other ways. I want to create a lane where there can be happy, healthy birds -- and thatll be my whole slogan. Youll see the bird with a smile, saying, Hey, Im living with Von Miller and were living great, man! Discount NFL Jerseys . Ronaldo produced a spectacular individual performance on Tuesday, scoring all three goals and guiding Portugal into the next years World Cup in Brazil with a 3-2 victory in Sweden. The Real Madrid forward has scored 66 goals in 2013, but the last three may be the boost he needs to upstage Messi after FIFA unexpectedly extended the voting period for the Ballon dOr to Nov. Cheap Nike NFL Jerseys . 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ALLEN PARK, Mich. -- The Detroit Lions have cut former Michigan standout Jake Rudock, choosing to keep only quarterback Dan Orlovsky behind starter Matthew Stafford.Detroit made moves Saturday to reduce its roster to the NFLs mandatory 53-man limit, waiving 21 players and putting tight end Andrew Quarless on the reserve/suspended list.The Lions also cut receivers TJ Jones, Jay Lee, Jace Billingsley and Quinshad Davis, cornerbacks Alex Carter and Darrin Walls, linebackers Jayson DiManche, Zaviaar Gooden and Khaseem Greene, tight end Adam Fuehne, centers Gabe Ikard and Lemuel Jeanpierre, safety Isaiah Johnson, offensive linemen Michael Ola, Brandon Thomas and Luke Marquardt, defensive tackles Caraun Reid and Gabe Wright, defensive back Charles Washington and running back George Winn.dddddddddddd---AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and www.twitter.com/AP-NFL ' ' '