Through his first two seasons in the NFL, Pittsburgh Steelers tight end Pat Freiermuth has been quite the offensive weapon.
Freiermuth, who is entering his age-25 season (he turns 25 in late October), has been one of the more productive tight ends in the NFL over the last two seasons. Freiermuth has hauled in 123 passes for 1,229 yards and nine touchdowns in his first two years in 32 games. That included a stellar rookie season in 2021 with Ben Roethlisberger under center, hauling in 60 passes for 497 yards and seven touchdowns. In Year Two, Freiermuth increased his receptions to 63 and yards to 732, but the touchdowns didn’t follow as the Steelers had some struggles in the red zone offensively.
The Penn State product has recorded 60-plus receptions in each season, joining Keith Jackson as the only tight ends in NFL history to accomplish such a feat. No tight end in NFL history has hauled in 60-plus passes in each of his first three seasons though. Freiermuth could do just that in 2023.
With a shot at history, it’s no surprise that Freiermuth was named to CBS Sports’ All Under-25 Team offensively Tuesday morning, edging out Atlanta’s Kyle Pitts for the spot on the roster.
“Freiermuth is one of the more underrated tight ends in the NFL. While he caught just two touchdowns in his second NFL season, Freiermuth recorded 63 receptions for 732 yards. Both ranked No. 6 among tight ends in 2022. Of those 63 receptions, 37 resulted in a first down. That’s more than George Kittle, Dalton Schultz and David Njoku,” CBS Sports’ Jordan Dajani writes. “Freiermuth should just get better and better as he continues to build chemistry with quarterback Kenny Pickett.”
Freiermuth certainly is one of the most exciting young tight ends in the NFL, in large part due to his consistency, both from a production standpoint and with his hands in general. His 37 receptions that went for first downs last season were fifth-best among tight ends in the NFL.
While Freiermuth did see a dip in production from a touchdown standpoint, that doesn’t take away from the consistency that Freiermuth has put on display in his first two seasons, serving as that true security blanket for his quarterback. He has a great rapport with Pickett, and that should only get stronger the more the two get reps together on the field and in big situations.
