Heath Miller Earl Heath Miller , Jr . ( born October 22 , 1982 ) is an American football tight end for the Pittsburgh Steelers of the National Football League ( NFL ) . Miller played college football for the University of Virginia , earned All - American honors , and was recognized as the best college tight end in the nation . The Pittsburgh Steelers selected him with the 30th overall pick of the 2005 NFL Draft , and he was a member of the Steelers ' Super Bowl championship teams in 2006 and 2009 . Early years . Miller was born in Richlands , Virginia . He attended Honaker High School and lived in Swords Creek , Virginia . He played quarterback for the Honaker Tigers high school football team , where he earned the Associated Press Player of the Year honor as a senior and was a two - time AP All - State selection . He also earned the All - Southwest Virginia first - team honors at quarterback and was a second - team all - state selection at defensive back , adding Region D Offensive Player of the Year accolades . He set several school records in passing and leading the team to its first state championship game his senior year , in which they lost to King William High School 25 - 15 . While attending high school , Heath also played first base for the baseball team where he earned the Black Diamond District first - team honors , and was an All - Region and All - State selection . He was also a forward on the basketball team where he earned the All - District and All - Region honors . College career . Miller attended the University of Virginia , where he played for coach Al Groh ' s Virginia Cavaliers football team from 2001 to 2004 . Originally signed to play quarterback , Miller made the transition to the tight end position during his redshirt freshman year . He did throw one pass during his college career , connecting with fellow tight end Patrick Estes for a score in a prime - time game against the South Carolina Gamecocks . Nicknamed " Big Money " for his ability to gain first downs and score touchdowns , Miller became a three - year starter at tight end for the Cavaliers . He scored touchdowns in each of his first five games at Virginia thereby setting a school season - record for tight ends , and led Atlantic Coast Conference ( ACC ) tight ends in receiving all three seasons of his college career . He was a first - team All - ACC selection in 2003 and 2004 , and a unanimous first - team All - American in 2004 . Miller became the first ACC player to win the John Mackey Award in 2004 , which is presented annually to the top college tight end of the season . In his freshman season , Heath set an ACC record for freshmen tight ends with 9 touchdown receptions in a season . He followed that up with a sophomore campaign that saw him set ACC tight end records for receptions ( 70 ) and yards ( 835 ) in a season . In his junior season , Heath was awarded the John Mackey Award and was only the second player in Virginia history to be a unanimous All American . Heath concluded his career holding ACC records for most career receptions ( 144 ) , yards ( 1 , 703 ) and touchdowns ( 20 ) by a tight end . In Virginia history , these totals place Heath second in receptions , seventh in yards , and fourth in touchdown receptions , regardless of position . He also shares the school record for most 100 - yard games by a tight end ( 3 ) , and he caught at least one pass in 32 of his final 33 games . He majored in sociology . Professional career . The Pittsburgh Steelers selected Miller in the first round , thirtieth pick overall , of the 2005 NFL Draft . He was only the third tight end drafted by Pittsburgh on the first round in 28 years . In his rookie season with the Steelers , he finished with 39 receptions for 459 yards and 6 touchdowns . During a four - game stretch in his rookie season , he caught five touchdown passes and was considered a strong candidate for the Offensive Rookie of the Year award . Though he cooled off , he remained a solid contributor in the Steelers ' 2005 Super Bowl run . Miller caught three passes for 61 yards and one touchdown in the Steelers ' 21 – 18 upset over top - seeded Indianapolis Colts in the divisional playoff round . In the Steelers opening game of the 2006 season , Miller caught 3 passes for 101 yards , including an 87 - yard touchdown reception , the longest touchdown catch by a tight end in a regular season game since 1974 . It was also the longest catch ever recorded in the Steelers home stadium , Heinz Field . Replays showed that he should have been marked out of bounds at about the one - yard line , but the play was not challenged by Miami Dolphins coach Nick Saban quickly enough . Miller finished the season with 34 catches for 393 yards and 5 touchdowns . In the 2007 Season , Miller set new career highs for touchdowns ( 7 ) , receptions ( 47 ) , and receiving yards ( 566 ) . He benefited from new offensive coordinator Bruce Arians ' system of offense which called for 3 tight ends , giving Miller more chances to catch passes . 2007 was the breakout year that most experts expected him to have after being under - utilized in his first two seasons . In Super Bowl XLIII , Miller had five receptions for 57 yards to help Pittsburgh win the game . Miller won his second Super Bowl Ring . Because the Steelers do not emphasize tight ends in their passing game , he has not compiled exceptional receiving statistics . Miller is recognized for capitalizing on the opportunities that he gets , rarely dropping a pass . On July 30 , 2009 , the Steelers signed Miller to a new six - year contract that binds him to the team through the 2014 season . The contract is worth $ 35 . 3 million , including a $ 12 . 5 million signing bonus . In 2011 , Heath became the Steelers ' all - time leader in career receptions for a tight end , passing Elbie Nickel . In that same year , he moved into the top 5 on the Steelers ' all - time receptions list , moved into the top 10 on the Steelers ' all - time receiviing yards list , and was named to USA Football ' s All Fundamentals Team . Miller was selected to his first Pro Bowl on January 25 , 2010 , replacing the Indianapolis Colts ' tight end Dallas Clark who participated in the Super Bowl . For the 2010 - 11 season , Miller was elected by his teammates to be the offensive captain . On October 11 , 2012 in a loss against the Tennessee Titans , Miller had 6 receptions for 67 yards moving him past Louis Lipps for third place on the steelers all time receptions list . During a 13 - 10 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals in week 16 , Miller tore his ACL and MCL , causing him to miss the rest of the season ; that same week , he was also selected to the Pro Bowl . After the season , Miller was voted MVP of the team by his teammates for his contributions in the 2012 season . On March 4 , 2014 , Miller ' s contract was reduced from $ 9 . 5 million to $ 6 . 1 million , opening up around $ 3 . 4 million in cap space for the Steelers . He is now under contract through 2016 , and the 2 new years include a base salary of $ 4 million . Personal . He is the son of Earl and Denise . He and his wife , Katie , were married during the 2007 offseason and they have three sons , Chase , Jake , and Cole . Not only does Heath have a promising football career , he also is involved with a number of charities . For several years now , Heath has participated in the Salvation Army and WTAE TV ' s Annual Mini golf Classic as a host to raise money for the Salvation Army . Heath has also been involved in charities such as fashion shows and high school fundraising basketball games .