Anthony Miller is no stranger to being overlooked.
The Bears’ rookie receiver was a self-made star at Memphis, starting his career as a walk-on and ending it with All-American honors and earning every important receiving record in school history. Now, he’s ready to get back at it and make that climb to the top again.
And I definitely wouldn’t bet against Miller, because his combination of talent, work ethic, and confidence could come together and create one of the most dynamic pass-catchers in the game. So when ESPN’s Matthew Berry shared his fantasy projections with the second-round wideout, it should have come as no surprise that Miller essentially laughed it off:
I love this exchange between Bears rookie WR Anthony Miller and ESPN Fantasy Football Guru Matthew Berry: pic.twitter.com/DkVXBjIB3T
— The Ten-Yard Line (@TheTenYardLine) June 1, 2018
As if Miller needed a bigger chip on his shoulder.
Miller was a touchdown machine in college, hauling in 14 scores as a junior and 18 in an All-American senior season. So yeah, Miller should be miffed about a projection that has him scoring only four touchdowns this season. The guy has a nose for the end zone and there is no doubt he is not going to forget this as he works his way up the Bears’ depth chart.
The new-look Bears have a head coach whose offenses excelled in the passing game, a quarterback projected to make major strides in his second season as a pro, and have upgraded the wide receiver and tight end positions. So Miller should be confident in saying he should score at least eight touchdowns, even if he isn’t the primary option in his rookie season.
Miller could have easily gone down the line and nit-picked what he might have believed as low-ball numbers for catches and receiving yards, and to be fair I would have done exactly that after averaging 95 catches and 1,448 yards in his last two seasons at Memphis. But Miller has his priorities straight and his eyes set on the end zone, and that’s a good thing.