Speed Kills: Scotty Miller lands the roster spot

Success out of the gate for Schnell

Spencer Schnell came out of the preseason gate, flintlock pistols blazing, racking up 7 receptions for 119 yards in the Pittsburgh game. He was one of the stories folks were talking about around the water coolers at work and by ourselves and all the other Bucs news outlets. You won’t see his name or any stats for the next two games. Then in the final game against the Cowboys, he was underwhelming with only 2 receptions for 24 yards. Still, overall he showed promise and was just another tough decision that Arians and Licht would have to make, among a crowded field of talented receivers. Hard truth dictates no matter how many great receivers you have, you can’t keep them all, and hard decisions have to be made.

Feature Image Credit: Instagram millertime_10

Cuts have to be made

Mathew Eaton, Anthony Johnson, and DeMarkus Lodge were slashed. K.J. Brent, Cortrelle Simpson, and Emanuel Hall also sliced. A decision between Schnell and the versatile Scotty Miller played out, and Schnell came out on the short end. My take on that decision comes down to the speed of the two. Schnell runs a 4.86 in the 40, nothing really special about that for sure, kind of slow for a skilled player and that compared to a 4.33-4.36 time over that same 40 for Scotty Miller and the decision on who to cut becomes much clearer. Miller is not only greased lightning-fast, but he can play all the receiver positions and is very good at coming up with the ball in traffic.

In the end, one thing above all else

Miller was injured during camp missing out on some games and practice time. It is believed that Scotty was drafted to fill Adam Humphries shoes in the slot after his departure to the Titans. He was also a very productive receiver and leader at Bowling Green in college. So even if all things were equal between the two, speed kills and had to have been the biggest plus on Miller’s side. We have all heard it before, “Speed cannot be taught, or coached.” You either got it, or you don’t, and Miller’s got it. The speed and the roster spot, along with Breshad Perriman who has been timed at as fast as 4.25 in the Dash, it gives the Bucs some Blazing speed at their disposal. They both should be hard to catch. We wish the best to Spencer Schnell and the rest as they look to catch on with another team. Go Bucs!!