Fred Miller (born February 6, 1973) is an American former professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

offensive tackle Offensive may refer to: * Offensive (military), type of military operation * Offensive, the former name of the Dutch political party Socialist Alternative * Fighting words, spoken words which would have a tendency to cause acts of violence by the ...

. He most recently played for the

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of the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

(NFL). He was drafted by the

St. Louis Rams The St. Louis Rams were a professional American football team of the National Football League (NFL). They played in St. Louis, Missouri, from 1995 through the 2015 season, before moving back to Los Angeles, California, where the team had played ...

in the fifth round of the

1996 NFL draft The 1996 NFL draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The NFL draft, draft was held April 20–21, 1996 NFL seas ...

. He played

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at Baylor.

NFL playing career

Miller was expected to struggle with

Tennessee Titans The Tennessee Titans are a professional American football team based in Nashville, Tennessee. The Titans compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. They play the ...

rookie sensation

Jevon Kearse Jevon Kearse (born September 3, 1976), nicknamed "the Freak", is an American former professional football player who was a defensive end for eleven seasons in the National Football League (NFL) during the late 1990s and 2000s. Kearse played col ...

Super Bowl XXXIV Super Bowl XXXIV was an American football game played at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta, Georgia, on January 30, 2000, to determine the National Football League (NFL) champion for the 1999 season. The National Football Conference (NFC) champion ...

, having given up several sacks to Kearse in the regular season match up between the teams. In Super Bowl XXXIV, Miller gave up no sacks (with the exception of one that was negated by a Kearse penalty) in the Rams' 23–16 championship win. Miller had the distinction of making the Rams' first reception of the game on a tipped pass, an unusual accomplishment for an offensive lineman. It would be Miller's final game with the Rams, as he signed with the Rams' Super Bowl opponent—the Titans—for the 2000 season. In 2005, Chicago Bears teammate

Olin Kreutz Olin George Kreutz (; born June 9, 1977) is an American former professional American football, football player who was a Center (American football), center in the National Football League (NFL) for fourteen seasons. He played college football f ...

broke Miller's jaw in an altercation. The team had originally stated, "Fred Miller broke his jaw while getting out of bed in the middle of the night." Both players were fined $50,000 by the NFL. On February 18, 2008, the Bears released him. He was re-signed by the Bears a week into the regular season on September 10.

Coaching career

Miller was an assistant coach of the varsity football team at North Shore Country Day School in

Winnetka, Illinois Winnetka () is a village in Cook County, Illinois, United States, north of downtown Chicago. The population was 12,475 as of the 2020 census. The village is one of the wealthiest places in the United States in terms of household income. It was ...

for the 2011 season. In 2011, he helped the school to a 9–2 record and one of the best seasons in school history, a mere three seasons after the team finished their 2008 season with an 0–9 record. In 2012, he was promoted to co-head coach. Miller also coached for the North Shore Titans youth football program in

Glencoe, Illinois Glencoe () is a lakefront village in northeastern Cook County, Illinois, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 8,849. Glencoe is part of Chicago's North Shore and one of the wealthiest communities in Illinois. According to t ...

previously.

Awards and honors

Miller was a letterwinner for the Baylor Bears every year from 1992 to 1995.  He was also given the All-Conference honor three times during his college career. Miller was inducted into the Baylor Athletics Hall of Fame in 2010. On October 22, 2022, the "B" Association and the Athletics Department at Baylor University bestowed upon Miller the 2022 Baylor Football Legend award.

Personal life

Miller is married and has two sons. His son Grant Miller also played football at Baylor University as a graduate transfer, and signed with the Los Angeles Rams as an undrafted rookie in 2023.

References

1973 births Living people American football offensive tackles Baylor Bears football players Chicago Bears players St. Louis Rams players Tennessee Titans players High school football coaches in Illinois Players of American football from Houston 20th-century American sportsmen {{offensive-lineman-1970s-stub