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Golden Tate talked the talk, Zach Miller is walking the walk:

Miller’s contract was set to cost $7 million against the cap for next season with a base salary of $4.8 million. Under his new deal, Miller will get just $900,000 in base salary with his cap number being reduced to under $4 million.

Miller spoke about his decision to accept a pay cut Tuesday at Safeco Field prior to the Seattle Mariners home opener against the Los Angeles Angels.

“Not really,” Miller said. “When it came down to it I wanted to be here and I just wanted to make that happen. Whatever I had to do to be here, that’s what got done.”

*disclaimer: I still love me some Golden Tate ... I'm just sayin'

Let's hope Miller is in the ear of Sherman and Thomas

Welcome back, Zach!

Good to hear. I love the guy and think he's valuable on the line.

Let's hope Miller is in the ear of Sherman and Thomas

More likely they were in his, if anyone was in anyone's ear. But yeah- we want those two back, too...

Obviously this is just speculation. But maybe Zach was in a better position to take a cut, because he was already a multimillionaire and Tate was on his way to making serious money?

Plus he knew that he would be an important part of this offense. Miller is a bad boy for staying. And he has one of the BEST hands on the field. Glad he resigned, whatever the reason!

Zach Miller is arguably a more important component to our offense than was Golden Tate. It isn't easy to find a good blocking tight end with the pass catching skills Miller posses, and especially considering how susceptible we are along the interior line, it's essential that we keep him in the fold.

I love Miller. Dude brings his lunch pail to work, that's for sure. I remember the season(s) he had in Oakland where he made it to the pro-bowl for the # of catches/yards. He made it to my pro-bowl for playing clean-up & never ever complaining about it. Selfless, under the radar...check. Becoming my new Mack Strong... Double Check!! (Don't worry Mack, I will always love you - queue Whitney Houston song).

We have a pass-catching TE, we've just needed him elsewhere. Thank you, Mr. Miller.

Testify, Sista. Easily my favorite offseason move, thus far. Zach Miller is all about head down, fourth-point-of-contact up; he just gets it done. Love the comparison to Mack, too.

Eaglehawk wrote:Obviously this is just speculation. But maybe Zach was in a better position to take a cut, because he was already a multimillionaire and Tate was on his way to making serious money?

Plus he knew that he would be an important part of this offense. Miller is a bad boy for staying. And he has one of the BEST hands on the field. Glad he resigned, whatever the reason!

Good post. Often times, we as fans let our emotions dictate how we feel about whether a player stays or goes, Miller has earned a TON of money in the years he's been in Seattle, and honestly wasn't going to get some mega contract had he refused the pay cut. He is "settled" down with a wife and two kids and at some point some players simply don't relish the idea of uprooting their families. More than likely all of those factors, as well as others were the reasons he accepted a pay cut. Tate isn't in the same situation, and made IMHO a smart "business" move, if for no other reason than it allows him to catch more passes and earn more money. He'll probably never win a SB again ( at least NOT in Detroit) but it will allow him a chance to showcase his unique skillset.

Isn't this Miller's 3rd contract - or extension of his 2nd?
If so, as most players make big money on their 2nd contract, he probably sees the writing on the wall and like you said values family over a little more money.
As well, he can hope and maybe expect to make some of that lost money up by being in the playoffs and perhaps another Super Bowl.

RiverDog wrote:Zach Miller is arguably a more important component to our offense than was Golden Tate. It isn't easy to find a good blocking tight end with the pass catching skills Miller posses, and especially considering how susceptible we are along the interior line, it's essential that we keep him in the fold.

Agreed Riv.
Actually, I don't even think there's any argument about it, Miller is FAR more important to our offense than Tate. It's not even close.
Tate's production will easily be replaced just by Kearse and Baldwin getting more opportunities. His production will be FAR surpassed by Harvin.
We didn't necessarily have another TE who can do everything Miller does, and who is as instrumental in our offense, both in terms of blocking, and his hands, as Miller is.
Maybe eventually Willson will surpass him, I hope he does with that speed of his, but until he does, Miller is simply far more important to our team.

Not sure if you guys saw the comments from Zach at the Mariners' home opener the other night, but here they are:

“When it came down to it I wanted to be here and I just wanted to make that happen. Whatever I had to do to be here, that’s what got done. I’ve been around long enough that I know the business of the NFL. It’s something you hear rumors about. You never know until you hear from the horse’s mouth. I’m just happy to be back. Love to be on this team, love playing with these guys. For me, it never was a question of being anywhere else, I wanted to be here.”

Retaining Miller was Huge.

He actually benefited from our OL being so poor last season, really. Had they somehow magically came around to being solid all season long, he might have been cut for sure.

But until further notice, we need him to help babysit the guys up front. Really hoping this will change soon. Zack is so good at catching passes when given the chance.