Living in
the Old Dominion (Virginia), I�ve had the opportunity to watch Heath Miller
play ball.� He is a solid athlete and in
my opinion a good first round draft pick for any team other than the Stillers. Miller was the Nation�s # 1 TE at
Stillers.com
has often defined the acronym, TE,
as Tackle Eligible.� My esteemed
colleague, StillMill, has often compared a Stiller
Tight End to a Maytag repairman.� Gets
paid but does little work.
I posted on
the boards that drafting a Tight End at 1:30 is a wasted pick.� Not that I don�t like Miller, but the Stillers have demonstrated the lack of utilizing a TE in
the offensive scheme.� We haven�t used a
TE as a weapon since Green left town and I�m highly doubtful that we will use
Miller in an active roll/passing threat.�
We drafted Bruener at #1 and saw his
utilization.
This is
what our TE�s did last season:
|
Name |
# Receptions |
Yardage |
TouchDowns |
How Acquired |
Remarks |
|
Jerame Tuman |
9 |
89 |
3 |
Drafted from |
Lee Mays
equaled his reception performance.� 366 reception yards after six NFL seasons. |
|
Jay Riemersma |
7 |
82 |
0 |
Free Agent from |
With the
Bills, he has never had a� season less
than 288 yards.� 220 reception yards after two
seasons at PGH. |
|
Matt
Cushing |
1 |
17 |
1 |
Undrafted free agent from |
Lifetime
reception average as a Stiller:� 7
yards per catch.� 91 reception yards after six
seasons with PGH. |
|
John Frieser |
0 |
0 |
0 |
Colgate
UNIV from the Texans |
www.steelers.com
doesn�t even have a picture of this guy. |
|
Matt Kranchick |
0 |
0 |
0 |
6th
Round Pick from |
6�, 7�
Graduated in 3 � years.� Saw as much
playing time at PSU as he does in the Black and Gold. |
|
Walter Rasby |
5 |
52 |
0 |
Free
Agent from Saints, Redskins, Lions and Panthers.� The Stillers
Drafted him in 1994 and cut him. |
www.steelers.com
doesn�t even have a picture of this guy. |
|
Marco Battaglia |
0 |
0 |
0 ( Two TDs in his career) |
Free
Agent from |
Caught
zero balls in 2004 as a Panther.� Hasn�t
caught a ball since 2001 with the Redskins.�
Was on the Stiller roster in 2002 |
|
TOTAL |
22 |
240 |
4 |
|
|
Seven Tight
Ends on a roster for a total of 22 receptions.�
This is a snapshot of one season, but it is consistent.� The Stillers do not
utilize TEs. Mark Bruener
has 12 yards receiving in 2003 during 14 games and he was a #1 pick.� His reception average in one season with the
Texans is higher than any of his seasons with the Stillers
and he was drafted in 1995.
We now have
a franchise QB and a #1 draft pick as a TE that will get paid millions.� I have zero faith that Miller will be put
into a situation to open up the offense.�
History does repeat itself, and Tight Ends and
For those
that don�t think TEs are useful in the NFL�s
offensive schemes, I�d invite you to watch some old game tapes featuring
Gonzales, Heap or Wycheck.�
I like
Heath Miller, but hate the pick.�