Born in Summit, minutes from Jets camp, and a graduate of Garfield HS in Bergen County, along with Monmouth University of the Jersey Shore, true Jersey guy Miles Austin, is now lording over the Jets’ wide receivers.
And he obviously has a very important job in Jets-Land, working with the likes of Denzel Mims and Elijah Moore, two young Jets receivers with big upsides.
Austin reunited with Jets coach Robert Saleh, who he worked with on the 2019 San Francisco 49ers staff, as an offensive quality control coach.
Austin left the 49ers after that one season, but stayed busy after being named to the Monmouth University Board of Trustees.
There is something in the water in Garfield when it comes to long shot receivers. First that town produced Jets great Wayne Chrebet, and then Austin, both undrafted free agents from 1-AA football programs, who went on to terrific careers.
During his career, mostly in Dallas, Austin had 301 catches and 34 touchdowns. He joined the Cowboys in 2006, but mainly played on special teams his first three seasons, but then due to an injury, he got a chance to start, and had one of the greatest receiver games in Dallas history in a win over Kansas City, with 10 catches for 250 yards and two touchdowns. Talk about taking advantage of your opportunity!
Late in his career, during a one-year stint in Cleveland, Austin played under offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan, who really took a liking to him, and ended up hiring him in San Francisco in 2019.
“Miles is one of my favorite players that I’ve ever coached, just in terms of how on it he was,” 49ers head coach Shanahan said. “Whether it was the run game or the pass game, he really enjoyed football. He was descending (as a player) at that time in his career, so I wasn’t sure I was going to like him as much. But then when I got there and I saw the person, you can see why he was so successful. A guy like that, you’re always like, ‘Hey, if you’re ever interested in a coach, you’d be a hell of a one.’”
