Having gone on record in the back page of the new preseason annual with Zach Miller as the tight end I expect to have on a lot of teams, I was a little alarmed by the story I saw yesterday. Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune thinks Miller might not even make it past final cuts in Chicago.
Specifically, Biggs believes that Daniel Brown will push Miller for the starting job in Chicago's offense. A converted wideout, Brown filled in when Miller was injured late last season. He caught 16 passes for 124 yards and 1 TD in the last six games, including 6 for 42 in his first start.
But that was the extent of Brown's noteworthy games; he didn't go over 24 yards in any of his other five starts. It seems hard to believe that Chicago could view him as a starter. Miller is 32 and has a long history of injuries, but he has a greater track record of productivity; four games with 60-plus yards a year ago, and six games with 4-plus receptions.
Among tight ends with at least 20 starts over the past two seasons, Miller was has been a top-15 fantasy tight end (1 point for every 10 yards, 6 for every touchdown) on a per-game basis. Not up with the elite guys, but a solid starter.
| TIGHT END PER-GAME NUMBERS, 2015-16 (20 STARTS) | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Player | St | No | Yds | TD | FPG |
| Rob Gronkowski, N.E. | 21 | 4.6 | 81.2 | .67 | 12.1 |
| Tyler Eifert, Cin. | 20 | 4.0 | 50.0 | .90 | 10.4 |
| Jordan Reed, Wash. | 26 | 5.9 | 63.0 | .65 | 10.2 |
| Delanie Walker, Tenn. | 30 | 5.3 | 64.5 | .44 | 9.1 |
| Greg Olsen, Car. | 32 | 4.9 | 68.0 | .32 | 8.7 |
| Travis Kelce, K.C. | 32 | 4.9 | 62.3 | .31 | 8.1 |
| Jimmy Graham, Sea. | 26 | 4.3 | 58.3 | .31 | 7.7 |
| Antonio Gates, S.D. | 25 | 4.4 | 47.1 | .48 | 7.6 |
| Gary Barnidge, Clev. | 32 | 4.2 | 51.7 | .35 | 7.3 |
| Zach Ertz, Phil. | 29 | 5.3 | 57.6 | .21 | 7.0 |
| Martellus Bennett, N.E. | 27 | 4.0 | 42.6 | .37 | 6.5 |
| Kyle Rudolph, Minn. | 32 | 4.1 | 41.7 | .38 | 6.4 |
| Eric Ebron, Det. | 27 | 4.0 | 46.3 | .26 | 6.2 |
| Zach Miller, Chi. | 24 | 3.4 | 38.5 | .38 | 6.1 |
| Julius Thomas, Jac. | 21 | 3.6 | 35.0 | .43 | 6.1 |
| Jason Witten, Dall. | 32 | 4.6 | 43.3 | .19 | 5.5 |
| Charles Clay, Buff. | 28 | 3.9 | 38.6 | .25 | 5.4 |
| Coby Fleener, N.O. | 32 | 3.3 | 35.1 | .23 | 4.9 |
| Jacob Tamme, Atl. | 23 | 3.5 | 37.7 | .17 | 4.8 |
| Richard Rodgers, G.B. | 32 | 2.8 | 24.8 | .32 | 4.4 |
| Will Tye, NYG | 24 | 3.4 | 32.6 | .17 | 4.3 |
| C.J. Fiedorowicz, Hou. | 23 | 2.7 | 28.2 | .22 | 4.1 |
| Clive Walford, Oak. | 27 | 2.2 | 25.3 | .22 | 3.9 |
| Ryan Griffin, Hou. | 25 | 2.8 | 27.7 | .16 | 3.7 |
| Jared Cook, G.B. | 26 | 2.7 | 33.0 | .05 | 3.6 |
| Dwayne Allen, Ind. | 27 | 1.9 | 19.1 | .27 | 3.5 |
| Garrett Celek, S.F. | 27 | 1.8 | 19.9 | .22 | 3.3 |
| Lance Kendricks, L.A. | 31 | 2.4 | 24.0 | .13 | 3.2 |
| Jermaine Gresham, Ariz. | 31 | 1.8 | 19.8 | .10 | 2.6 |
| Brent Celek, Phil. | 32 | 1.3 | 17.3 | .09 | 2.3 |
| Mychal Rivera, Oak. | 29 | 1.7 | 16.3 | .07 | 2.0 |
So we'll see. Chicago also signed Dion Sims from Miami, and used a second-round pick on Adam Shaheen. It's clear that Miller is on borrowed time.
But in 2017, I'm still thinking it will be Miller as the starter in this offense. Not willing to buy the idea that Brown is going to push him off the roster.
--Andy Richardson