Houston Texans already releasing Anthony Miller seems sudden

Maybe it was being injured before the season, or inconsistent play in two appearances, but Houston Texans wide receiver Anthony Miller is being released before Week 5 in a trade that didn’t fare well at all.

Are the Texans being too quick to make a decision on Miller? After trading for him this offseason, the Texans, who also received a seventh-round pick with Miller, gave up a ’22 fifth-round pick to the Chicago Bears, but less than five games into the season, the slot receiver is gone from the roster.

Even with fellow slot receiver Danny Amendola set to return from his hamstring injury, it still is a bit baffling that the Texans would already give up on a player they already traded a fifth-round pick for. The offense of the Texans isn’t much to write home about, and for a team that has five running backs on their roster this season, it seems to be that two slot receivers isn’t happening.

In a press conference on Wednesday, Texans head coach David Culley said the following about releasing Miller so early into his tenure with the franchise, with transcripts provided by HoustonTexans.com:

"“Basically, we’re always looking to do the best things we feel like are best for our football team. We feel like with Danny (Amendola) coming back, we feel like he’s going to be ready. It’s the same position. With the way we are and the way we’re structured offensively, there’s only room for one of those guys in that position. We feel like that’s the best thing moving forward that we needed to do.”"

Houston Texans: Miller had few targets to work with in 2021 season

Miller in two games this season with the Texans had five receptions for 23 yards on 11 total targets. That’s not much to work with for the former second-round pick, and for the Texans to give up on a player who is only in his fourth season for a player like Amendola, whose best days are behind him, doesn’t make much sense.

It is understandable this team is in a long-term rebuild, and wins probably won’t happen very often, but Miller has more potential than the veteran Amendola, right? Amendola didn’t even join the Texans until after camp was finished, so he’s just in a fill-in role for this season.

Miller in his few receptions had only 10 yards gained after the catch, and he had no broken tackles on a reception. Miller also had no drops while with the Texans, but on passes where he was targeted by quarterback Davis Mills, two of them were intercepted.

All in all, this move seems a bit much, being that the Texans aren’t that great on offense, and at one time they thought enough of Miller to give away a fifth-round pick.

General manager Nick Caserio and Coach Culley know more than most of us, so they have their reasons, even if they don’t seem to make much sense with this one involving Miller.