Pittsburgh Steelers TE Pat Freiermuth had all of two catches for five yards, albeit with a touchdown, through the first 120 minutes of football in 2023. He received some criticism for his perceived effort last week and was able to respond with his best game of the young season, catching three passes for 41 yards and a touchdown.
QB Kenny Pickett was particularly happy to see him step up when his number was called (he was only targeted four times), noting their inability to feed him earlier. “We didn’t get him going earlier those first two games”, he said in his postgame remarks, via the team’s Twitter account. “Definitely wanted to get him a lot more touches, especially with Diontae [Johnson] being out”.
Johnson, who had been the team’s leading receiver, suffered a hamstring injury early in the second half of the season opener. He was placed on the Reserve/Injured List and still must sit out at least the next two games before he is eligible to return, so others have had to take on larger roles in his absence.
“He’s a guy that needs to step up”, Pickett said, “along with Cal[vin Austin III] and Allen [Robinson II]. I think between those three guys, we can spread the ball around and keep defenses on their toes. That was good to get 88 back in stride”.
Freiermuth was expected to make big strides in his third season. He began to establish himself as a go-to target in QB Ben Roethlisberger’s final season as a rookie in 2021, but the quarterback turnover last year resulted in something of a reset until late.
The budding rapport between Pickett and Freiermuth was to be one of the key reasons the offense would improve this year. Perhaps it was a couple weeks delayed and we can begin to see the fruits of that labor now. Freiermuth does have two scores already, the most important statistic.
While it wasn’t a big night for the offense, there were some big individual efforts. Austin, mentioned above, had 72 yards on two catches, one of which went for no gain, the other a 72-yard touchdown. George Pickens caught four passes for 75 yards. He didn’t find the end zone but did find a variety of ways to contribute—including a ridiculous Spider Man-like block.
The passing game is trending in the right direction, which is about as good a thing as we can say right now. One has to consider the quality of opponent, but also the venue. The first two games were at home, but against superior defenses.
One thing is for certain, and that is there is still more room for Freiermuth to contribute in this offense. His role should only continue to grow as the Steelers build off this momentum. This is the first game of the season where the offense can actually feel a little good about themselves, win or lose.
