James Robert Miller was born on July 24, 1949, in Iowa City, Iowa.[1] He was a two sport (basketball and football) All-State athlete for Regina High School in Iowa City.[1]
Miller signed with the Atlanta Falcons of the National Football League (NFL) after going undrafted in the 1971 NFL draft.[4] Falcons head coach Norm Van Brocklin said that Miller went undrafted due to being overweight.[3] Miller was 270 pounds in college but dropped to 235 with the Falcons.[3] He played in all 14 games for the Falcons during his rookie year in 1971, recovering one fumble, while mostly playing special teams.[5][3] He injured his knee during the 1972 preseason, and missed the first five games of the 1972 regular season.[6] Miller returned and played in two games before suffering a season-ending knee injury.[6] He ended up missing the entire 1973 season due to injury as well.[4] He played in all 14 games, starting 11, for the Falcons in 1974.[5] Miller had another injury setback in July 1975.[2] It was revealed that his knee had "bone fragments chipped and floating loose".[2] Miller stated "Right now I've decided not to play this year. Possibly I'll play next season, but I haven't really decided yet. It would depend on how my knee is and how things are going for me otherwise."[2] Miller was then released by the Falcons after having knee surgery for the fourth time.[2][7]
In 1977, Miller returned to the Falcons as a scout for two years.[3] In 1980, he started Jim Miller Real Estate Development.[3] In 1988, it was reported that Miller owned 200 apartment units in Iowa City and 500 apartment units in Ohio.[3]
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