LATROBE, PA (93.7 The Fan) – He's the rarest of players in the modern game. A pass catcher who isn't screaming either for the ball or when he doesn't get it. Tight end Heath Miller didn't make a fuss, just became the team's greatest tight end ever and on Saturday selected for the Steelers Hall of Honor.
"It's hard to really put into words to be honest with you," Miller said. "I knew this was in existence, but I didn't give too much thought to one day being a part of it. To think about the legacy of the Steelers and the great players who have come through here. To even be mentioned in the same area code as some of those guys, it's really hard to put into words what it means to me."
That is just Heath Miller. Ben Roethlisberger would say all the time he was the only one to not complain when he was open and didn't get the ball. When Ben needed a completion, he trusted Miller. The 2005 first-round pick caught 592 passes (45 for touchdowns) in his 11-year career, missing a total of eight games over that period.
"I just loved the fact that Heath worked in silence," said Steelers Head Coach Mike Tomlin. "You talk about a man of few words, Heath was a man of no words, but you felt the intensity in his demeanor and in his play. I think it's a unique thing when a quiet guy is still able to display intensity and you feel it in his presence."
"From an early age, my parents were just big on, 'no bragging or boasting, just do your job'," Miller said. "Oftentimes, when I was wide open in the endzone, I just did my job. There wasn't anything all that special going on. Maybe the other guys did a really good job to make my job easy."
"But I did feel like you could feel the team feed off my energy because they knew it was authentic when it happened."
Born and went to college in Virginia, Miller said he couldn't have found a better franchise to play for or city to play in. He quickly became a fan favorite and heard his first name yelled across stadiums, home and away. They even continued when he retired.
"Initially, my first couple of years, it was a little too weird to watch," Miller admitted Saturday. "So, I was either at my son's baseball game or doing other stuff and I would get random texts like, 'Oh they're still chanting your name'. My first reaction is that the tight ends are probably annoyed by that, it's probably annoying."
"But to put it in perspective, the appreciation and the love from the fans never went unappreciated by me. It meant a great deal that they chose that way to show their appreciation for the work I was trying to do for them. I think it was awesome."
He says a few times when he's been back in Pittsburgh he's had people see him and as they walk by under their breath they will say 'Heath'. Miller says he wishes people would just say hi, he would rather talk with you.
A two-time Super Bowl champion, the 6'5" tight end will always be welcome in Steelers nation. Not just for the job he did on the field, but how he handles himself off of it.
"Heath was a model citizen," said Steelers President Art Rooney. "A team player, unselfish, did whatever needed to be done to keep having success. His work ethic was fantastic."
"Just a model professional football player."
And on November 13th joins the legends in the Hall of Honor.
