Pittsburgh Steelers TE Pat Freiermuth could be in for a big year in 2024. He had a down 2023 due to injury, missing five games and having a career-low 3.9 targets per game. But with new offensive coordinator Arthur Smith, Freiermuth could be in for a resurgence.
After all, he’s only a year removed from a 98-target season in 2022 when he posted a career-high 11.6 yards per reception. And even in a down 2023, Freiermuth still managed 9.6 yards per catch. He’s shown the ability to be an impact player in the passing game. But what makes him that kind of player?
“The one thing about Pat, he’s really savvy,” QB Justin Fields said after the Steelers’ first practice of training camp Thursday via video from the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. “He’s smart, and then he also has great hands, too. So when you get all those attributes in a tight end, it makes him a great player.”
Freiermuth was not used as a downfield target under former offensive coordinator Matt Canada. In his best season, Freiermuth’s average depth of target was a career-high 8.3 yards. Yet Freiermuth has been remarkably consistent with his ability to generate yards after the catch, averaging over 4.0 yards after the catch in every season of his career.
That speaks to the savvy that Fields referred to. Freiermuth has the ability to get himself in advantageous positions to both get open and create after the catch. He also has only six drops on 224 career targets.
So while Freiermuth may never rank among the elite athletes at the tight end position, he brings high-level skills to the Steelers’ offense, making him a reliable and appealing target to his quarterbacks.
Then there’s the matter of new offensive coordinator Arthur Smith’s offense. I did a study early this offseason after about how he has utilized tight ends throughout his coaching career. When Smith was the head coach of the Atlanta Falcons, he targeted tight ends over 25 percent of the time in all three seasons. During that time, the Steelers exceeded that target share cut-off once. That was in 2022 when Freiermuth had his best season.
The union of Smith and Freiermuth bodes well for the latter. Combining his attributes as highlighted by Fields with Smith’s predilection for using tight ends means Freiermuth should be in for a big year.
You can watch all of Fields’ post-practice comments below:
