PITTSBURGH — Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger called him the best tight end in the game, a sentiment echoed throughout the locker room.

However, Heath Miller cautions it will take some time before he resembles the player who led the Steelers in receptions in 2012 before tearing ligaments in his right knee last December.

The three-time Pro Bowler practiced for the third straight day as a full-time participant and is expected to play when the Steelers (0-2) play host to the Chicago Bears (2-0) Sunday night. While the ever cautious Miller remained vague on whether he’s ready to go, he allowed he’s “a work in progress.”

“Whenever I’m able to play, I think it’s unrealistic to think I’m going to come back in midseason form,” Miller said. “I haven’t played football since last December, so I’ve been out for a while. With the rules now, you have one day of pads per week.

“That’s not training camp, by any means.”

Miller led the Steelers with 71 catches and eight touchdowns before the knee injury in the second-to-last regular-season game last year. The Steelers haven’t looked the same through a winless preseason and two feeble losses to Tennessee and Cincinnati. Having Miller’s familiar No. 83 out there will certainly produce a level of comfort, though coach Mike Tomlin insists “we are not expecting Heath to step out of a phone booth with a cape on.”