For the Pittsburgh Steelers, there has never been a tight end as good as Heath Miller. Selected in the first round of the 2005 NFL Draft, Miller went on to play for 11 seasons—all for the Steelers—and rewrote the team record books for the position. He is fourth all-time in receiving yards, regardless of position, with 6,569 and third all-time in receptions with 592. There was a reason that Ben Roethlisberger would write down Heath Miller for his team MVP vote every season that the two were together.
Beyond his prowess as an offensive weapon, he was a very skilled blocker. In this era of football, most tight ends fall into the category of a move tight end or a blocking tight end, and very few are able to do both. Miller was a true all-around tight end and very valuable to the offense over his 11-season career. He was asked about the Steelers’ current TE1, Pat Freiermuth, on the most recent episode of Cameron Heyward’s Not Just Football posted on YouTube and spoke highly of him.
“I think the great thing that Pat does is, just like I alluded to earlier, he’s very good in the running game,” Miller said. “He’s great in the passing game. He has a great feel for zones, and I think he’s a quarterback’s best friend because he has a great understanding from the outside looking in of the passing game and how to get open and when to get open. And he makes the contested catches.
“There’s a lot that he brings to the table and really nothing that I’ve seen him struggle with.”
Not to refute the legend that is Miller, but he was being a little generous when it came to the run blocking. Freiermuth has grown in that area, but he still isn’t a great run blocker at this point in his career. Pro Football Focus has given him a run blocking grade in the 50s for each of his three seasons so far with his highest being 59.6 in 2022.
As a receiver, he has the potential to be a quarterback’s best friend. For the two seasons he has been able to remain mostly healthy, he has had 60 or more receptions, and he was able to have seven touchdowns in his rookie season with Ben Roethlisberger at quarterback. But all three of his NFL seasons have been under the offensive system of Matt Canada. Whether it was Kenny Pickett, Canada, or a combination of both, the Steelers haven’t utilized the middle of the field very much. That is where tight ends make their money.
Roethlisberger has said multiple times on his Footbahlin’ podcast that the team needs to get Freiermuth involved more, and he has talked about how he wishes they got more than just the one season that they had together in 2021.
Now Freiermuth will be in Arthur Smith’s system, which is traditionally known for being very tight end friendly. If he is able to stay healthy, he is poised for a big jump in production. He has a big chance to be Russell Wilson or Justin Fields’ best friend for the 2024 season.
Entering the final year of his contract, it seems likely that the Steelers will extend Freiermuth prior to the start of the season. Whatever deal he signs may end up looking like a bargain following the 2024 season if things go as planned.
