After the trade smoke began to clear last month, most people became resigned to the likelihood that Anthony Miller would be on the Chicago Bears roster for one more season. Despite his ongoing inconsistencies, he has played well enough in spurts to offer hope he can still blossom into a good player. He is 26-years old and seems ready and willing to accept the challenge ahead.
Unfortunately, it doesn’t appear his standing at Halas Hall is improving. Adam Jahns of The Athletic did an assessment of what he saw from the Bears’ receiving corp during the past month of practices. Allen Robinson remains a stud. Darnell Mooney looks even better. Yet what should really concern Miller is how good newcomers Marquise Goodwin and Damiere Byrd looked. Jahns seemed to suggest that their performances along with his continued absence is putting the former 2nd round pick in danger of not even making the roster.
Speaking of the Bears’ receivers, the money the team spent in free agency affected that group more than any other position. Here’s how I would rank the wide receivers based on what happened during organized team activities and minicamp:
1. Allen Robinson: Pay the man, Bears.
2. Darnell Mooney: What a fifth-round steal.
3. Marquise Goodwin: The Bears wanted speed and got it.
4. Damiere Byrd: See above.
5. Dazz Newsome: A broken collarbone ended the sixth-round pick’s first offseason program, but he’ll get his opportunities in the slot and at punt returner in camp.
6. Anthony Miller: Nagy said that a “little minor nick” kept Miller out of OTAs, and later it prevented him from participating in minicamp. His injury allowed Goodwin and Byrd to see more targets and make more plays, which didn’t improve Miller’s on-the-bubble status.
It is amazing to think things have reached this point.
By the end of 2019, people were convinced Miller had turned a corner. A strong 438 yards and two touchdowns over the final seven games. He looked confident and ready to take off in 2020. Then everything fizzled. Nothing seemed to go right for him. There were ugly drops in key moments, poorly-run routes, bad decisions after the catch, and of course his untimely ejection in New Orleans for punching a Saints defender.
It isn’t helping that he continues to suffer from health setbacks. Something that was a persistent issue for him in college and now in Chicago as well. The Bears have reached a point where they’re starting to believe they can’t trust him. Something that can often be a death blow to a player’s status on a roster. Unless he rebounds quickly in training camp, he may find himself among the final cuts in August.
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Anthony Miller has no room to complain at this point
The Bears gave him three years already to realize his full potential. While it’s true there were some health setbacks, the truth is Miller has mostly himself to blame. His inability to grasp what it takes to be great at the pro level continues to hold him back. It is so depressing because the receiver is so talented. He is capable of being one of the best slot receivers in the NFL. Yet something always seems to stand in his way.
With Mooney already having surpassed him on the depth chart, it is Goodwin and Byrd who threaten to bounce him off of it completely. The bottom spots are almost always reserved for receivers who can contribute on special teams. Something Miller hasn’t been overly good at during his Bears career. That is why rookie Dazz Newsome is listed ahead of him. If he flounders early in training camp and another receiver steps up?
He might be finished.
Thus Anthony Miller would become another in a long line of highly-drafted failures for Chicago at the wide receiver position. Hope remains that he can still avoid that fate. His final stand will begin on July 31st when players report to Halas Hall. Everything might come down to how he does in the preseason. Something nobody would’ve thought possible barely a year ago.
