Tag: Dante Miller

Giants rookie RB Dante Miller making his case for a roster spot

Former Columbia star running back Dante Miller, aka “Turbo,” is opening some eyes at New York Giants training camp.

It happens every summer. An undrafted rookie surprises coaches at training camp and stakes a claim to a roster spot.

That player for the New York Giants this training camp just might be former Columbia running back Dante Miller.

The Giants signed Miller this spring when it was discovered that his college football eligibility hit a snafu at South Carolina. He was one of the several hopefuls the Giants added to the roster to help fill the void left by the departure of Salon Barkley.

While Miller is far from Barkley at this time, The Athletic’s Dan Duggan reports that Miller is opening some eyes so far at camp with his 4.27 speed, elusiveness, and versatility.

It’s still a challenge to evaluate running backs even when the pads come on because there’s no tackling to the ground. But rookie running back Dante Miller continues to impress with his quickness. The “Turbo” nickname clearly fits, as he showed on a run that he bounced outside at the second level for a big gain.

It’s too early to get overly excited about a 5-foot-9, 200-pound back who only had six carries in his final two college seasons. But there’s a path to a roster spot — and a role — in this Giants’ backfield if Miller continues to impress.

Talkin’ Giants host Bobby Skinner adds that “if Eric Gray can’t block in preseason, I think Miller is making a case for a spot.”

Miller has a wide skill set. He can also be a threat out of the backfield as seen below on the other end of a Drew Lock touchdown strike.

The Giants’ depth chart at running back is currently as follows: Devin Singletary, Eric Gray, Tyrone Tracy Jr., Jashaun Corbin, Miller, and Jacob Saylors.

They will likely keep four backs on the 53-man roster. Miller and Tracy can both return kicks and are established pass catchers, which enhances their chances.

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Giants’ Dante Miler has ‘no doubt’ he can succeed at NFL level

New York Giants running back Dante Miller, nicknamed “Turbo,” has no doubt he can succeed at the NFL level.

This fall, the New York Giants will be entering a season for the first time since 2017 without star running back Saquon Barkley.

The team’s approach to running back has gravitated to the ‘committee’ method where there is no top back and the hot hand usually gets fed.

The depth chart at running back heading into the summer reads as follows: Devin Singletary, Eric Gray, Gary Brightwell, rookie Tyrone Tracy Jr., Jashaun Corbin, and one other name — former Columbia star Dante Miler.

Of this group, the Giants are anxious to see what the rookies, Tracy and Miller, can bring to the offense.

Tracy is a former wide receiver who switched to running back while Miller played out his college eligibility at South Carolina after excelling in the Ivy League.

“You tell them about Columbia, and they automatically assume you’re super-smart and these different type of things,’’ Miller told the New York Post recently, “and then you say ‘South Carolina’ and they go, ‘Oh.’ So you get the best of both worlds when it comes to that.’”

What the Giants are most interested in is Miller’s burst, which earned him the nickname “Turbo.” They would love to have another back who could take it to the house.

At 5-foot-9 and 200 pounds, Miller is a compact runner with powerful legs who believes he can play at the NFL level.

“No doubt in my mind I can play at this level,” he said. “Not even a doubt.”

Miller, who missed the draft due to an eligibility snafu with the NCAA, has attracted the Giants’ eye but is still in the process of selling himself as a player.

“You look at the film and you see an explosive person,” Miller said. “Wherever I go, that’s what I bring to the table, I bring explosive plays, because that’s the name of my game.”

There are some who don’t quite see it, but Miller will remind them that he can squat over 700 pounds and there’s more to his game than meets the eye.

“You can say the size thing, but you won’t find a back that’s bigger than me that’s stronger than me, because I’m strong. I’m very strong,” he said. “I’m not one of those guys — I don’t smoke, I don’t drink, or do any of those types of things. I feel like if you do what you need to do you reap the benefits of that.”

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Dante Miller recalls his unlikely path to the Giants

Dante Miller reflects on his unlikely and strange path to the New York Giants, which he credits to one of the team’s national scouts.

Not every player who makes it to the NFL takes the traditional path as a draft pick or a high-priced free agent.

Throughout the league’s history, many players have emerged from basic obscurity to NFL stardom. The New York Giants are hoping that running back Dante Miller is one of those players.

Miller began his college career at Columbia and then transferred to South Carolina as a graduate walk-on. He played six games in 2022 but was declared ineligible and was forced to the sidelines. Miller returned to South Carolina in 2023 only to be denied again.

He should have been part of the 2023 NFL draft class but due to a mix-up with his eligibility status combined with the slow-moving NCAA, he was declared ineligible again.

That has all led here to 2024. Miller has technically been a free agent for a year and only recently became a hot name among the NFL scouting community. He not only drew interest from the Giants but several other NFL teams as well.

“It was a bit tricky,” Miller recently told the Richmond Observer. “My agent reached out to the League office to determine if I was draft eligible. We were told I lost my eligibility last May after the last Draft, but was told that I could sign before this Draft.”

And he did. Last week, Miller became a New York Giant after they held a private workout for him They are getting a bit of a steal, a player who has fallen through the cracks. He recently ran a 4.27 40 at South Carolina’s pro day.

“There was a national scout for the Giants named Mike Derice who knew about me from my time at Columbia,” Miller explained. “The Giants were interested in me and he asked about my eligibility situation at South Carolina.

“After I put up my numbers at my pro day, I was invited to a private workout. I worked out in front of the coaching staff and the front office staff. It took me about a day to realize New York is a great place to be. It’s a great organization to play for and I hope I bring a lot to the team.”

His college coach at Columbia, Al Bagnoli, also believes the Giants may have gotten a break with Miller.

“It’s low-risk [investment] when you sign him as a free agent,” Bagnoli told the New York Post. “But he’s zero risk. He’ll represent the place unbelievably, and I don’t say that lightly.”

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Giants sign running back Dante Miller

The New York Giants have signed speedy running back Dante Miller following a strange NCAA debacle.

After losing Saquon Barkley to free agency, the New York Giants had a big hole to fill. Signing Devin Singletary was a good start, but they knew they needed more than that to fill the void.

Most thought it would be handled in the 2024 NFL draft, but a loophole allowed Dante Miller to sign before the draft even gets underway, reports Andy Staples of on3.

Miller isn’t your standard running back. He grew up in foster care after his mother left him with a neighbor and didn’t return. His grandmother already had his two siblings but was unable to get custody of Miller before she passed.

So he bounced around foster care in Connecticut until his mom’s first cousin, Antoinette Flowers, found him and jumped through the hoops required to gain custody of a child in the foster care system.

Eventually, Miller learned to trust Flowers and she learned how to help him channel his boundless energy into sports. He played a variety of sports, earning the nickname ‘Lil Turbo,’ and did well enough in school to earn his way into Columbia University.

Miller played three years of football there, but during the pandemic, he lost a year. In the Ivy League, you only get four years, there’s no red-shirting. He had a choice to make, and thinking he had two years of eligibility, ended up at the University of South Carolina.

There was a lot of confusion around Miller’s eligibility. He had two years to play one season, not two full years of eligibility. In 2022, he played six games for the Gamecocks. The NCAA only lets you redshirt if you’ve played four or fewer. They tried to get a waiver from the NCAA and Miller stopped playing in 2022 hoping they would accept it. They didn’t.

“It was my saving glory,” Miller said. “I love ball. I love to compete. I don’t take it lightly.”

When the NCAA handed down its decision, South Carolina did everything they could to keep Miller in football shape so he could enter the 2024 NFL draft. He didn’t attend the combine but showed up at South Carolina’s pro day and he turned more heads than he realized when he ran a 4.27-second 40-yard dash. He also benched 225 pounds 28 times, which would have been the most by any running back at the combine.

Then the question was asked, because of Miller’s eligibility issues, if he was even eligible for the draft. Turns out, he’s not eligible for the 2024 draft, he should have been in the 2023 draft. This means he was essentially a free agent and could sign with any team and negotiate a salary that’s separate from a standard rookie contract.

The NCAA dragging their feet inadvertently put Miller in a place where he has the ability to earn more money than he otherwise would have. And the Giants took advantage of it.

Miller’s life began in New York, he attended Columbia University and he still has extended family in the area. It was really a no-brainer for Miller to want to sign with the Giants after they showed a high interest in the running back.

It’s hard to say whether Miller’s ability will translate to the NFL, but one thing is certain: If it’s something Turbo wants, it’s something Turbo will get.

Miller’s determination and perseverance to overcome the odds stacked against him up to this point bode well for his ability to adapt and improve in the future.

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