He’s arguably the greatest tight end in NFL history, and continues to add to his Hall of Fame resume, but Kansas City Chiefs’ TE Travis Kelce has an appreciation for the position as a whole.
In fact, he has eyes for one particular young tight end he likes to watch.
That would be fourth-year Pittsburgh Steelers’ tight end Pat Freiermuth.
Appearing on the latest episode of the “New Heights Podcast” with his brother, Jason Kelce, Travis spoke highly of Freiermuth, stating that he just exemplifies what a Steelers tight end is due to his toughness and playing style.
“Pat is actually, he’s one of my favorite tight ends to watch, man. He’s savvy in his route running. He is very quarterback friendly, which he knows angles coming out to where he knows he can get a guaranteed catch,” Kelce said, according to video via the show’s YouTube page. “And quarterbacks love it when you come outta your breaks in certain angles, depending on where the defender closest to you is.”
Freiermuth doesn’t often get credit for his work as a route runner, but when arguably the greatest tight end in league history praises him for that very aspect of his game, that matters.
Freiermuth isn’t flashy in his route running. He’s not a speed demon and he’s not a guy who’s going to break ankles with his cuts and speed. But he just knows how to get open, and he’s very subtle in the ways he gets open.
In Week 14 against the Cleveland Browns, Freiermuth showed that off on his 20-yard touchdown pass from Russell Wilson. On the play, Freiermuth widened the route just enough to get inside leverage on Browns S Grant Delpit, creating a throwing lane for Wilson to fire a strike to him for the score.
To cap things, Freiermuth had some fun, punting the football into the stands after the score, which should lead to a fine on Saturday.
But that route right there and his ability to create leverage and win for a touchdown was a good example of what Kelce was talking about.
“He does a great job of feeling voids like that and feeling how he needs to get in and outta breaks. And then on top of that, he’s just a tough football player, man,” Kelce added regarding Freiermuth. “I think he embodies the Steeler kind of way to play, which is like, it’s that Steel Curtain, that toughness that you gotta play with, man. He’s willing to stick his face in the fan and yeah, do whatever he needs to do for his team, man.”
That sums up Freiermuth well. He’s not a great blocker overall, but he’s willing to do it and wants to improve at it. And he’s a tough player after the catch, too, one who runs hard with the football in his hands. From that perspective, he fits Pittsburgh perfectly, and Kelce — coming from Cleveland Heights — understands and appreciates that.
The two have spent some time together at TEU, too, in recent years, and they’ll get a chance to catch up on Christmas Day, too, when the Steelers and Chiefs battle on Netflix.
