Patriots Release RB Lamar Miller

Lamar Miller‘s stint with the Patriots has come to an end, at least temporarily. ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports (via Twitter) that New England has cut the veteran running back.

However, as Tom Pelissero of NFL.com notes on Twitter, the Patriots fully guaranteed $200K of Miller’s base salary. Therefore, it “wouldn’t be a surprise” to see Miller return to New England, especially if the team were to suffer an injury at running back.

Miller signed a one-year deal with the Patriots last month. It was only a year ago that the 29-year-old tore his ACL in a preseason contest while playing for the Texans. Reports at the time of the signing indicated that Miller was fully recovered, and Pelissero notes in his tweet that the veteran is “healthy.”

If that’s true, then Miller could end up being a great grab for an RB-needy team. He earned a Pro Bowl nod during his last healthy season, rushing for five scores and 973 yards on 210 carries (4.6 yards per carry) with the Texans. He also added 25 receptions for 163 receiving yards and one touchdown during that 2018 campaign.

The Patriots have a propensity for adding veteran players to see if they’ve got anything left in the tank, but Miller wasn’t necessarily expected to just stick around for camp. Rather, it was thought that he’d play a rotational role with New England. Ultimately, the team seems content to move forward with their current grouping of Damien Harris, Sony Michel, James White, and Rex Burkhead.