Steelers TE Pat Freiermuth Details Hilarious 1st Encounter With Ben Roethlisberger After Drinking Too Much The Night Before

Pittsburgh Steelers' tight end, Pat Freiermuth is a fan favorite entering his third season with the organization. The franchise drafted him in the second round of the 2021 NFL Draft and he immediately jumped into a starting role. It helped that he had a veteran quarterback and future Hall of Famer, Ben Roethlisberger to play alongside. The two would go on to become close in Roethlisberger's final season and Freiermuth would end up being an important part of the offense despite his lack of NFL experience.

As he prepares to enter his third year, a lot of attention will be focused on his ability to stay healthy. He also could have a new partner-in-crime going forward after the Steelers drafted Darnell Washington in the third round of the 2023 NFL Draft. The duo could become a force to be reckoned with in the AFC. The team's offense will rely heavily on second-year quarterback, Kenny Pickett and fans hope he makes a Josh Allen-type leap in year two.

Steelers Tight End Freiermuth Had Awesome First Interaction With Roethlisberger

Freiermuth's first quarterback in Roethlisberger certainly helped him transition to the NFL quicker than some rookies. Now, he is reflecting a little bit about his experiences with the former two-time Super Bowl Champion. Freiermuth recently joined Dan 'Big Cat' Katz and his co-host, PFT Commenter on the popular Barstool Sports podcast, Pardon My Take.

The two hosts brought up Roethlisberger early on in the conversation and the tight end couldn't help but tell the hilarious story of when he spoke with his new signal-caller for the first time. It came less than 24 hours after he found out that he was going to become a Steeler and it's safe to say he wasn't in the best shape when his phone rang.

"My first interaction with him was he called me like the day after I got drafted and it was like two in the afternoon and I was still in bed because I was pretty hungover from getting drafted, celebrating and stuff."

Draft nights are special for all players who end up hearing their names called. No one can blame Freiermuth for celebrating after he found out he was selected by the Steelers. That didn't stop Roethlisberger from calling him and Freiermuth detailed how the conversation went. He didn't even know who was calling him when he picked up the phone.

"I'm like, 'Hello', because I saw the 412 area code and he was like, 'Are you still sleeping?' I'm like, 'No, who is this?' He was like, 'Oh, this is Ben.' I was like, 'Oh, sh*t, what's up dude?'"

The two would have much better interactions going forward, although that is a pretty funny one to reflect on. The tight end finished his rookie season with 60 catches, 497 yards receiving and an impressive seven touchdowns. He was a go-to guy in the red zone and solidified himself as the number one tight end on the team. The retired quarterback has compared him to legend, Heath Miller multiple times.

Freiermuth continued to talk to Katz and PFT about what is was like playing with Roethlisberger and even having his locker placed right next to his during the 2021 season.

"He was great man. My locker [was] right next to him which was pretty cool. He was a good dude to be around. Definitely one of the guys. It was kind of cool learning from him and kind of see, I mean I got to learn from him, my locker is right next to a Hall of Famer. It was pretty cool."

Have you heard the story of Roethlisberger catching Freiermuth on the phone for the first time? Let us know in the comments below!

#SteelerNation