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The Seattle Seahawks had an excellent season in 2012, going 11-5 during the regular season and beating the Washington Redskins in the Wild Card Round before losing to the Atlanta Falcons 30-28 in the Divisional Round. Expectations were sure to be high entering the 2013 season without any notable additions, and adding wide receiver Percy Harvin via trade this offseason added a weapon for quarterback Russell Wilson.
But Harvin will now be sidelined for at least the majority of the season after undergoing hip surgery, creating opportunity for others to emerge. Can a tight end pick up some of the slack left by Harvin’s absence?
Zach Miller has not had a great first two seasons in Seattle, with 63 catches for 629 yards and three touchdowns in 31 games played. But he did have a solid postseason last year (12 receptions for 190 yards), including eight catches for 142 yards and a touchdown against the Falcons.
Miller showed he can produce at a fairly high level with 182 receptions for the Oakland Raiders from 2008-2010, including at least 56 catches each season and 60 or more twice. A lingering foot injury suffered in that postseason loss to Atlanta had been a concern, but Miller has been activated from the active/PUP list and should be ready for the start of the season.
Miller has the size (6’5″) to at least become a primary red zone option for Wilson, and the prospect of more targets (53 in 2012) creates nice potential for a boost in his overall numbers. Visanthe Shiancoe had the three best seasons of his career with the Minnesota Vikings from 2008-2010 with current Seahawks’ offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell in place as offensive coordinator, so Miller has a real chance to at least approach his career-highs across the board this season.
Brad Berreman is a contributing writer at Rant Sports.com. Follow him on Twitter @bradberreman24.
