Tight end Heath Miller is expected to play a key role as a receiver in new Steelers offensive coordinator Todd Haley's system, Ed Bouchette reports in Thursday's edition of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
"Haley is excited about what Heath Miller is capable of," Steelers coach Mike Tomlin said. "He's been very clear about that, his excitement to work with Miller. I would imagine that the tight end is going to be a part of our plan."
Tight end hasn't been an overly productive position in Haley's four-plus years directing an offense. Leonard Pope had two 20-plus-catch seasons under Haley (2007 with the Arizona Cardinals and 2009 with the Kansas City Chiefs) before the Chiefs' Tony Moeaki had 47 receptions for 556 yards and three touchdowns in 2010. That partly could be due to the level of talent Haley has had to work with, but he now has one of the NFL's best in Miller.
Miller has 337 receptions for 3,864 yards and 31 touchdowns in seven NFL seasons, including a career-high 76 receptions and 789 yards during his one Pro Bowl season.
Over the last two seasons, Miller has 93 receptions, 1,143 yards and four touchdowns in 30 games. Decent production, sure, but Miller expects more this season.
"I definitely see opportunities for that to happen," Miller said. "That's not to say there weren't opportunities in the last offense. We (the tight ends) are going to be involved a lot."
