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Scott Miller

Steelers To Sign WR Scotty Miller

May 8th, 2024 at 10:06pm CST by Sam Robinson

Another former Arthur Smith Falcons charge is coming to Pittsburgh. Following Cordarrelle Patterson, MyCole Pruitt and Van Jefferson‘s Steelers signings, Scotty Miller will be en route to Pennsylvania.

The Steelers and Miller agreed to terms Wednesday, ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter tweets. It is a one-year deal. Miller played one season under Smith in Atlanta; he remains best known for his contributions in Tampa.

Miller, 26, worked as an auxiliary wideout for a Falcons team that struggled through the air. The former Bucs draftee caught 11 passes for 161 yards and two touchdowns last season. That number bettered Jefferson’s Atlanta production, though the latter arrived during the season via trade, but still ranked fourth among Atlanta wide receivers.

It is clear the Steelers are giving Smith input when it comes to acquisitions, as three of his tertiary Falcons targets and a key blocking tight end are in the mix. Granted, only Patterson appears a lock to be on Pittsburgh’s 53-man roster come Week 1. But each will bring scheme familiarity. The 5-foot-9 weapon could offer Pittsburgh another slot option in addition to Calvin Austin.

Miller made steady contributions to the Bucs’ Super Bowl LV-winning team but did not factor into the final two Tom Brady-piloted passing attacks much. In 2020, however, the Bowling Green alum worked alongside Mike Evans and Chris Godwin to give Brady a nice receiving trio in his first Tampa Bay season. Miller caught 33 passes for 501 yards and three touchdowns that year. He eclipsed 70 receiving yards four times from Week 1 to Week 7. The Bucs’ turbulent Antonio Brown partnership led to Miller’s role being reduced, though the latter’s first-half-ending deep TD grab helped Tampa Bay hold off Green Bay in the 2020 NFC championship game.

A 2019 sixth-rounder, Miller has not eclipsed 200 yards in a season since that 2020 campaign. That season doubles as the most recent slate in which Miller topped 275 offensive snaps. A turf toe bout limited him in 2021. The Falcons did use Miller as a kick returner last season, though the Steelers — barring what would be a shocking Justin Fields experiment — are all but set to use Patterson there to take advantage of the recent NFL rule change.

Following their Diontae Johnson trade, the Steelers have George Pickens anchoring their receiver group and third-round pick Roman Wilson having a clear path to becoming his top sidekick. Beyond that, the team has taken a quantity-based approach. In addition to ex-Falcons, the likes of Quez Watkins, Denzel Mims and Marquez Callaway are on the Steelers’ 90-man offseason roster. This will create an interesting competition for roster spots, as this setup will require a few veterans to be denied roster spots come September.

Falcons, WR Scotty Miller Agree To Deal

March 28th, 2023 at 4:49pm CST by Sam Robinson

Making the opposite move of Russell Gage, Scotty Miller will venture from the Buccaneers to the Falcons. Atlanta is adding the former Tampa Bay wide receiver on a one-year deal, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweets.

A former Bucs sixth-round pick, Miller played out his rookie contract with the team last season. Miller will join Mack Hollins as offseason Falcons receiver additions.

Miller made steady contributions to the Bucs’ Super Bowl LV-winning team two years ago but did not factor into the team’s final two Tom Brady-piloted passing attacks much. The diminutive speedster has totaled just 223 receiving yards, along with no touchdowns, since 2021. Miller will aim to bounce back in Atlanta.

In 2020, however, the Bowling Green alum worked alongside Mike Evans and Chris Godwin to give Brady a nice receiving trio. Miller caught 33 passes for 501 yards and three touchdowns that year. He eclipsed 70 receiving yards four times from Week 1 to Week 7. But the Bucs’ about-face on Antonio Brown led to Miller’s role being reduced. Although Miller’s first-half-ending deep TD grab helped the Bucs hold off the Packers in the 2020 NFC championship game, he never could bounce back as a steady target after Brown’s arrival.

A severe turf toe bout limited Miller to nine games in 2021, and the team’s offensive freefall last season did not leave much room for non-Evans or Godwin options to display much. Gage’s $10MM-per-year deal to come over from Atlanta and replace Brown lowered Miller’s ceiling as well.

The Falcons have added Hollins and Miller to complement Drake London. The team tendered Olamide Zaccheaus as an RFA last year but has not re-signed the Thomas Dimitroff-era investment. Hollins signed a one-year, $2.5MM deal; it is unlikely Miller’s pact matches that number.

WR Scotty Miller On Bucs’ Roster Bubble?

July 11th, 2022 at 6:56pm CST by Adam La Rose

Two names immediately come to mind when it comes to wide receivers on the Buccaneers, and the position’s importance to their recent success. Beyond Mike Evans and Chris Godwin, however, there have of course been important secondary wideouts who have contributed to Tampa’s prolific passing attack. 

At times during his career, Scotty Miller has been one such ancillary player. Part of the Bucs’ highly-rated 2019 draft class, he showcased his ability as a deep threat during his rookie season. He made only 13 catches, but averaged an impressive 15.4 yards per reception, setting him up for a more productive second campaign. With Tom Brady at QB, and despite Evans, Godwin and Antonio Brown serving as competition for targets, he took a significant step forward.

The former sixth-rounder recorded five starts in 2020, and added more volume to his production while maintaining the high yards-per-catch element of his game (33 receptions, 501 yards). His play carried over into the team’s Super Bowl run, including a touchdown catch in the NFC title game. Especially after Brown’s midseason departure, expectations were raised for Miller in 2021, but he wasn’t able to live up to them.

The Bowling Green alum made a total of just 10 catches between the regular season and playoffs. That disappointing figure, coupled in part with the extension given to Godwin, could leave Miller’s roster spot in jeopardy. Greg Auman of The Athletic writes that Miller’s future is currently “all over the map” (subscription required). He could find himself handling the No. 4 role (while also contributing on special teams), but could also wind up on the wrong side of Tampa’s roster crunch at the end of training camp. As Auman notes, Miller could find himself battling 2021 fourth-rounder Jaelon Darden and undrafted rookie Deven Thomkins for as little as one spot on the final squad.

To a far greater extent than many would have anticipated after his 2020 performance, Miller figures to be a key player to watch this summer.

Bucs Designate Sean Murphy-Bunting, Scotty Miller For Return

November 2nd, 2021 at 8:22pm CST by Sam Robinson

The Buccaneers’ cornerbacks and pass-catching corps have encountered constant injury trouble this season, but the defending champions will have some help soon.

Cornerback Sean Murphy-Bunting and wideout Scotty Miller surfaced as IR-return players Tuesday. Given that this is a bye week, that marks a good sign for their prospects of being active when the Bucs resume play in Week 10. Each has 21 days from Tuesday to return to action.

Murphy-Bunting, a former second-round pick, has been out since going down with a dislocated elbow in Week 1. A two-year Bucs starter who notched three interceptions during the 2020 playoffs, Murphy-Bunting was the first of a few Tampa Bay corners to go down this season. The Bucs subsequently lost Jamel Dean and Carlton Davis, though Dean has since returned. Davis, who has been out since Week 4, is eyeing a Week 10 return. The cornerback brought in because of this injury run, Richard Sherman, has also missed the past two Bucs games. Fellow replacement Dee Delaney also missed last week’s game.

Operating as the Bucs’ No. 4 wide receiver, Miller has seen a “severe” turf toe case sideline him since Week 3. Miller has just two catches this season but eclipsed 500 receiving yards in 2020. He added a rather crucial deep touchdown grab in the NFC championship game to help the Bucs to their second Super Bowl.

The Bucs have since played without Antonio Brown and Rob Gronkowski for much of the time between then and their loss to the Saints on Sunday. With Brown not expected to need an IR stint, it is possible the Bucs will deploy Gronk, Brown and Miller alongside Mike Evans and Chris Godwin following their bye week.

Minor NFL Transactions: 9/29/21

September 29th, 2021 at 9:37am CST by Zachary Links

We’ll keep track of today’s minor moves here:

Arizona Cardinals

Philadelphia Eagles

  • Promoted: OL Sua Opeta

Seattle Seahawks

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Buccaneers WR Scotty Miller To Miss “Significant Amount Of Time”

September 27th, 2021 at 5:42pm CST by Ben Levine

Scotty Miller will be sidelined for the foreseeable future. The Buccaneers wideout is set to miss “a significant amount of time,” according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter (via Twitter). Miller is still awaiting test results that will determine how long he’ll be out, but an IR stint seems likely.

Head coach Bruce Arians referred to the injury as “severe turf toe” earlier today, according to ESPN’s Jenna Laine (via Twitter). Standard “turf toe” could lead to a one-month absence or a season-ending injury. During this past year’s playoffs, Patrick Mahomes dealt with a turf toe injury that ultimately required offseason surgery. In other words, the timeline could be variable, but at the very least, Miller will probably be sidelined for at least the next four weeks.

The 2019 sixth-round pick has spent his entire career with the Buccaneers, and he made a name for himself in 2020 with Tom Brady under center. The wideout finished the year with 33 receptions for 501 yards and three scores, and he added another four receptions for 80 yards and one touchdown in the playoffs.

After appearing in only 20 snaps through the first two weeks of the season, Miller got into a season-high 32 snaps last night and hauled in his first two catches of the season.

Minor NFL Transactions: 12/17/19

December 17th, 2019 at 8:40pm CST by Zachary Links

Today’s minor moves:

Atlanta Falcons

Cincinnati Bengals

Denver Broncos

  • Promoted from practice squad: DB Aljiah Holder

Miami Dolphins

New York Jets

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Tennessee Titans

Buccaneers Sign Five Draft Picks

May 9th, 2019 at 8:25pm CST by Dallas Robinson

The Buccaneers have begun to sign their 2019 rookie class, announcing that they’ve reached deals with the following five draft choices:

After ranking 3oth in pass defense DVOA last season, the Buccaneers needed to throw assets at the coverage game, and they did so by adding Murphy-Bunting on Day 2. The 2018 CMU Defensive Player of the Year, Bunting is a “long, lanky press corner,” according to Lance Zierlein of NFL.com, which should make him a good fit for Todd Bowles‘ aggressive scheme. Nelson might need to replace Jason Pierre-Paul‘s production after posting 9.5 sacks a year ago, while Gay should be in line to serve as the Bucs’ kicker during his rookie campaign.

Tampa Bay still has yet to sign first-round linebacker Devin White, third-round cornerback Jamel Dean, or third-round safety Mike Edwards.