Earlier this week, Steelers tight end Heath Miller said there was a “chance” he’d be able to play the entire 2013 season after tearing his ACL late last season but admitted there’s no timetable yet for his return to full activity.
“Yeah, I think it’s a little too early to say anything like that. It’s a long time before training camp, so that’s a long time to make gains positively or maybe even for something to happen negatively,” Miller said, via the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. “So, I’m just taking one day at a time, and I hope to get better every day.”
Miller’s quarterback has a more optimistic take on the tight end’s recovery. During an appearance on WDVE on Thursday, Ben Roethlisberger said that he had “no doubt” that Miller would be on the field for the first week of the season and that his bigger concern is keeping Miller from doing too much too fast as he gets ready for the games to begin.
“The biggest thing is going to be trying to hold Heath back because I think he’s gonna want to get out there too soon,” Roethlisberger said. “I’m gonna fight to say ‘Heath, don’t play in any preseason games. Just get out there for the regular season.’”
The Steelers seem to be approaching things the same way as Roethlisberger. They didn’t draft a tight end in April and their only move of note at the position in free agency was bringing back Matt Spaeth, who has stuck in the NFL the last six years because of his skills as a blocker.