Chicago Bears Terminate WR Contract in Sudden Move

The Chicago Bears released veteran wide receiver Scotty Miller from the practice squad on Thursday, ending a brief second stint with the team, the club announced.

The corresponding move was signing long snapper Beau Gardner back to the practice squad ahead of Monday Night Football against the Philadelphia Eagles.

Miller had been signed to the practice squad on August 31, one day after Chicago cut him while trimming to the 53-man roster.

Miller, 29, joined the Bears in May on a one-year, $1.3 million deal after a veteran tryout at rookie minicamp.

The Barrington High School product and former Bowling Green standout was meant to add experience to a younger receiver room led by Rome Odunze and Luther Burden III. He also reunited with receivers coach Antwaan Randle El, who coached him with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

A sixth-round pick by Tampa Bay in 2019, Miller’s peak came in 2020. He caught 33 passes for 501 yards and three touchdowns during the Buccaneers’ Super Bowl LV run with Tom Brady, including a key late-half touchdown against the Packers in the NFC Championship.

Over seven seasons with Tampa Bay, Atlanta, and Pittsburgh, he totaled 99 receptions for 1,216 yards and six touchdowns in 93 games. His production dropped with the Steelers, where he had 14 catches for 131 yards across 2024–25.

In preseason with Chicago he posted seven catches for 65 yards and handled some punt returns, but younger players such as Kaden Davis and Maurice Alexander outplayed him for depth spots.

After the initial cut, the practice-squad role kept him in the building as a veteran insurance option. That arrangement lasted only a few weeks of the regular season.

The latest release is a roster-management move rather than a reflection of a sudden drop in standing.

NFL teams constantly shuffle practice-squad spots for specialists, and Gardner’s return filled an immediate need. Miller, as a vested veteran, can sign elsewhere immediately.

His time in Chicago was short but typical of a late-career depth receiver: a tryout that became a contract, a training-camp competition he did not win, a practice-squad hold, and then another transaction.

Whether another team claims him for special teams or slot work remains to be seen.

For the Bears, the focus stays on their young core as they prepare for Philadelphia.