Denver Broncos defensive superstar Von Miller is a weird dude. His entire backstory is not all fun and frivolity, but in addition to being a great player – he’s got an interesting personality. To help promote Madden NFL 17, Miller stepped up to the plate to star in an ad that asks him to channel Justin Bieber. It’s as strange and absurd as it sounds.
In the game trailer, Miller sings a parody of Bieber’s “Sorry,” called “Start Me.” He also parodies the video, featuring a lot of different versions of Miller. This means a bunch of Von Millers wearing garish outfits (although not necessarily outfits you wouldn’t expect the real Miller to wear) and dancing. All while trying to convince the hypothetical Madden player to start him.
Miller deserves a ton of credit for completely committing to the premise. He’s really delightful in the video. His singing is not going to help him launch a pop music career, but he’s not that bad. It doesn’t hurt that his dancing is legitimately fun. Also, a parody of a Bieber song about a football video game should by all rights be terrible, but this is actually a fairly catchy and clever song.
Maybe Von Miller really is the NFL’s answer to Justin Bieber. If nothing else, he’s starred in an unexpectedly enjoyable commercial. You should start Miller in the game, by the way. He’s really good at football.