Steelers Might Have Some Good News Concerning Heath Miller

Miller could practice before Week 1. Mandatory Credit: Tim Heitman-USA TODAY Sports

The Steelers received a bit of a boost at the tight end position when they activated veteran David Johnson from the PUP list yesterday.  While Johnson’s addition to the mix is nice, some recent news regarding Heath Miller and his potential return is even better.

According to a recent tweet by Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports.com, Miller is set to practice before Pittsburgh’s season opening game versus Tennessee.

Whether or not Pittsburgh’s brass will place Miller on the PUP list at the beginning of the regular season still remains a big question.  Miller loses his PUP list eligibility once he takes the practice field, so it certainly appears like the Steelers’ coaching staff will go in that direction once the 2013 campaign finally begins.

If in fact that Pro Bowl tight end can return healthy after the bye week following their game in London, then Pittsburgh can use an extra roster spot for Miller while they save the injured-reserve/designated-to-return spot for a recently injured player like Le’Veon Bell or Matt Spaeth.

While I do not want Pittsburgh’s coaching and medical staff to rush Miller to the field this fall, his presence has been definitely missed.  David Paulson is neither the blocker nor pass catcher that Miller is, and the Steelers’ red zone offense will be nothing short of dreadful without their most potent target in that particular area.

Despite the fact that Pittsburgh will be without Miller for a chunk of the season, I will still say that La Canfora’s news is definitely something positive for the “injury plagued at tight end” franchise.

Players Stats & Info. Provided By: ESPN.com, Steelers.com, and Pro Football Reference

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