Every Pittsburgh Steelers' fan knows the importance of having a good tight end. Whether it was Larry Brown and Randy Grossman in the 70s, Eric Green and Mark Bruener in the 90s, right on up to Heath Miller in 2005.
If anyone took that position for granted, they were certainly reaffirmed on the importance of a good tight end since Miller retired following the 2015 NFL season. It took 6 years and several different failures for the team to finally use a high draft pick on a sure bet stud at tight end. In the second round last season the Steelers selected Penn State standout Pat Freiermuth. Since his arrival he's gotten better with each passing day.
NFL Network's Cynthia Frelund ranked every team's most underrated player and she selected Freiermuth as the Steelers pick. Here's what she had to say.
APY: $1.51 million (rookie contract; 44th among tight ends).
My computer vision loves a versatile tight end, and that is exactly what Freiermuth was in 2021. Computer vision shows that his blocking win-share metric ranked fourth best among tight ends in the NFL last season. Per NGS, his +19.3 catch rate over expectation on tight-window throws was the highest among TEs. The 2021 second-rounder's utility in the red zone was also tied for top three in the NFL, as he hauled in all seven of his touchdowns in this area. Freiermuth helps make up for deficits along the Steelers' O-line and creates an outlet in the passing game, both of which combine to make him an incredibly important factor for Pittsburgh's new signal caller, whether veteran Mitchell Trubisky or rookie Kenny Pickett takes the QB1 job.
Freiermuth was impressive as a rookie, quickly developing a relationship with Ben Roethlisberger. His statistics don't jump out at you because of his lack of yards after the catch. But a lot of that blame could be placed on Roethlisberger's quick release and the fact he didn't have a lot of time to throw down field even if he wanted to. The fact that he had a poor yardage average wasn't lost on Freiermuth.
“I think my yards per average was atrocious," Freiermuth said after practice. "In my opinion, 8.2 yards, that is pretty bad on my end,” said Freiermuth. “I think if I have 60 catches, I should be more in the range of 800-900 yards. I think I definitely need to get that higher and maybe we push the ball downfield more this year.”
Freiermuth is now poised to make a big jump in season two. He told reporters after practice this week that he's put on a lot of muscle, but has kept his weight the same.
“I’m actually lighter than I was last year. I am bigger, but lighter,” said Freiermuth. “I was definitely beat up at the end of last season.”
Sky is the limit for Freiermuth as starts preparing for a full season as the Steelers #1 tight end. While he may be underrated by Frelund. He isn't underrated to SteelerNation.
