Miles Austin became Pro Bowl WR with Cowboys; Where is he now?
NEW YORK (BVM) – When Miles Austin entered the NFL out of Monmouth University as an undrafted free agent in 2006, not much was expected out of him. However, his perseverance allowed him to make the Dallas Cowboys’ roster, earn a valuable special teams role and eventually become a Pro Bowl wide receiver.
While his playing career would fizzle out in large part due to injuries, Austin has been able to share his success story with others over the past few years as both a coach and a mentor to young athletes.
Miles Austin’s early life, college career
Austin grew up in Garfield, New Jersey where he became a standout in football, basketball and track at Garfield High School. Playing both wide receiver and cornerback, Austin was named an all-county and all-state player in his senior year as he made 75 tackles and 10 interceptions on defense.
However, coming out of high school, there weren’t many big schools that had Austin on their radar at the collegiate level. As a result, he ended up staying in state to play at the Division I FCS level with Monmouth University.
While playing for the Hawks, Austin proved his special talent on the offensive side of the ball, catching 150 passes, scoring 33 touchdowns, and racking up 2,867 receiving yards – a school record at the time. Austin also set a single-season program record with 12 touchdown catches in 2003.
Despite coming from a small school, Austin still had an opportunity to compete at the NFL combine in 2006. There, he showed his athleticism further, highlighted by a 40.5-inch vertical jump.
Miles Austin’s NFL career
Unsurprisingly, Austin went undrafted in 2006, but latched on with the Dallas Cowboys as a free agent that offseason. He made the team as a special teams player, and by the end of the year, he was having a huge impact on the Cowboys’ success, returning a kickoff 93 yards for a touchdown in Dallas’ wild card playoff game against Seattle.
After becoming the first Monmouth player to take the field in the NFL, Austin became the first Hawks receiver to record a reception in the league in 2007. Still, his primary role remained on special teams.
In 2008, the wide receiver earned a chance at more of an offensive role. While injuries would hinder him a bit, Austin was able to rack up 278 yards and three touchdowns, and also had his first 100-yard game against the Packers that season.
With Terrell Owens gone, Austin eventually became a starter for the Cowboys receiving corps in 2009, and quickly emerged as one of Tony Romo’s favorite targets. In his first career start, he caught 10 passes for 250 yards and two touchdowns, one of which was a 60-yard overtime game-winner.
.@MilesAustinIII’s ’s first NFL start went well 🤩 (via @nflthrowback)
📺: #DALvsKC— Sunday 4:25pm ET on FOX
📱: NFL app pic.twitter.com/l1aziKhMa3— NFL (@NFL) November 20, 2021
The Monmouth product would go on to catch a career-best 81 passes that season, leading the NFC with 1,320 receiving yards and 11 touchdowns. Austin earned his first Pro Bowl selection as a result.
He followed up his breakout year with another Pro Bowl campaign in 2010, a season in which he went over 1,000 yards receiving again while scoring seven touchdowns. Following a down 2011 season in which he dealt with a hamstring injury, Austin rebounded to have a strong year in 2012 as well with 66 receptions, 943 yards and six touchdowns.
However, that season would be the last one of relevance for the undrafted wide receiver. After one more year with Dallas in 2013 where he again dealt with hamstring injuries, Austin was released by the Cowboys and signed with the Cleveland Browns. He produced a modest 47 catches for 568 yards during his time in Cleveland, but it was a far cry from his peak in Dallas.
In 2015, Austin latched on with the Cowboys’ rival, the Philadelphia Eagles, where he had a mostly disappointing campaign. He was released by Philly that December, which would prove to be his final year in the NFL.
Still, it was an impressive career considering where Austin started, as he finished his time in the NFL with 361 receptions, 5,273 receiving yards and 37 receiving touchdowns.
Miles Austin’s personal life, net worth
Austin made headlines in 2010 when he briefly dated Kim Kardashian, but he eventually settled down to marry his wife, Stacy Sydlo – also a Monmouth alum and former lacrosse player for the Hawks – in 2014. Since, the couple has had three children together: Maven, Ava and Miles IV.
Austin’s parents still reside where he grew up in Bergen County, while his sister works for the Garfield school district. The former NFL receiver consistently stays in touch with his home community as well.
In 2016, Austin earned an induction into the Monmouth University Athletics Hall of Fame. Shortly after, he also returned to Monmouth to complete his schooling, graduating with a political science degree in 2019. The following year, the 38-year-old was selected to serve on the school’s board of trustees.
During the course of his NFL career, Austin made over $40 million in career earnings. The two-time Pro Bowl receiver is estimated to have a net worth of around $4 million.
Miles Austin’s coaching career, post-playing endeavors
Not long after his playing days, Austin was brought back to Dallas by Jason Garrett and the Cowboys as a pro and college scouting intern in 2017. After being passed up for the Cowboys’ wide receivers coach position in 2018, Austin latched on with Kyle Shanahan and the San Francisco 49ers as an offensive quality control coach in 2019, a year which saw the Niners make a Super Bowl appearance. There, he got to work with another former star wide receiver from his era who has also gotten into coaching: Wes Welker.
Coaches Wes Walker and Miles Austin work releases with #49ers wideouts. pic.twitter.com/jW0wkDQkpL
— Rob Lowder (@Rob_Lowder) August 6, 2019
Austin left San Francisco following that season and took a year off from coaching, but in 2021, he finally earned a chance as a wide receivers coach while returning to the East Coast with the New York Jets. Reunited with former Niners assistant and current Jets head coach Robert Saleh, Austin has been responsible for the development of young receivers like Elijah Moore and Garrett Wilson.
Garrett Wilson shares what WR coach Miles Austin told him after Nick Chubb scored:
"They just gave us our only chance." pic.twitter.com/0lpEJKvJUT
— Jets Videos (@snyjets) September 18, 2022
Austin’s other main endeavor since his playing days has come in the form of the Austin Family Foundation, a non-profit organization founded by the former receiver aimed to help student athletes maximize their potential while also supporting and promoting youth programming in low-income areas to facilitate character development and involvement in the community.
Through the organization, the former Pro Bowl receiver has led several conferences to offer students guidance on not only sports, but life in general.
Despite becoming a talented NFL player, Austin has never lost touch of his New Jersey roots. Now, he gets to be close to home as a coach in the league while also helping educate other young athletes off the field. As successful as his playing career was, Austin is thriving just as much, if not more, since hanging up his cleats.
