Zach Miller On Military Veteran Who Lost Her Leg: 'That's A Special Human'
Phil Thompson | Chicago Tribune
To say Kirstie Ennis' story hits home with Zach Miller would be an understatement.
Ennis, a former Marine sergeant, underwent more than 40 surgeries and had her left leg amputated above the knee after surviving a helicopter crash in Afghanistan in 2012. Miller nearly lost his left leg after he suffered a severe knee injury while playing tight end for the Bears during a game against the Saints in New Orleans on Oct. 29.
"That's where I'm at with how real the military is," Miller said. "I had the possibility of going through that. She actually had that. Like, that's real for her." '
Miller met up with former Bears coach John Fox and ex-players James "Big Cat" Williams and Olin Kreutz on Wednesday at POW! Gym Chicago on the Near West Side. The group visited with members of Merging Vets and Players (MVP), a support program that puts together military veterans and former athletes for mixed martial arts training and mentoring to help the vets acclimate to civilian life.
It was hard for the former Bears, Miller in particular, not to be impressed with Ennis. After her amputation, Ennis became an accomplished mountain climber, snowboarder and swimmer and appeared in ESPN the Magazine's 2017 Body Issue.
"I was fortunate enough not to go down that road, but you see how she is," Miller said. "That's a special human. ... For her to come back and the things that she's doing now — top-five snowboarder, climbing mountains — she's doing really cool stuff."
"It's just real to see people that deal with way worse stuff than I got."
Fox, who was fired by the Bears on Jan. 1 after three years, said he drove Miller to the event.
"It was a 40-minute ride so it gave us a chance to catch up, see how he was doing as part of that transition, making that transition as smooth as possible. He still has a lot of questions, a lot of things he's looking at, much like all of us whenever something happens or we have a setback. Sometimes setbacks are setups for bigger things to come."
Miller, who has had nine surgeries, said, "I started to turn the corner about three weeks ago. I got off crutches and I was able to get kind of back to a little bit of a normal life."
Progress has been being able to get up and walk to the car. The realization that NFL team activities are starting is tough to accept. "That's probably the worst part about it," Miller said.
Despite long odds of ever playing again, Miller isn't ready to say he's retiring.
"That's a realistic thing, I know that, but I haven't made any of those decisions as of yet," he said. "I know there's a point where I'll have to decide on that. I'm just not at that spot yet to determine whether I want to come back and try to play or move on."
Miller, who is a free agent, said Bears general manager Ryan Pace and his staff have been supportive and patient.
"We'll cross that bridge when it's time. I have a lot of work to do to get back to playing ball," Miller said. "I was laid up four or five months, lost a lot muscle mass. Things are squeaky and tight, I gotta loosen them back up, build some strength up. It could be a while. I don't have a definitive timeline."
Sly Fox: A recurring theme Wednesday was how Fox, known for being both cryptic and caustic while answering reporters' questions, will fare as an ESPN NFL analyst.
Just fine, he said.
"I think it's completely different when you're in that setting (facing the media)," he said. "I think you're trying to be a little more evasive than helpful. I think it's completely different when you're on the other side. I think people will see that. I get to talk about something I love, and that's football, not protecting the team or players or any kind of competitive stuff."
Williams agrees: "For him just to sit down and not have to worry about the day-to-day football operations, I think he's going to do a great job. I think he will (open up more). I think this business, it does that to you. The good ones open up and don't really worry about burning bridges."
Kreutz control: Kreutz, the retired offensive lineman, did a little sparring with the veterans and built up a sweat. So, he was asked, what's his mixed martial arts style, striker or wrestler?
"I'm a ducker," he deadpanned before bursting into laughter. "You ever see a fetal position? That's what my expectation would be against those type of guys."