There have been quite the flurry of changes for the Pittsburgh Steelers offense this offseason. While the additions and subtractions to the roster are a projection and waiting game to watch play out, TE Pat Freiermuth remains and is due for a big year.
The goal of this article is to provide some statistical context to this notion, with signs from the 2024 season adding comfort to how well that could go for Freiermuth and the Steelers.
First, let’s look at his volume (targets/catches) in 2024 among tight ends with at least 60 targets (24 qualifiers):
Here, we see Freiermuth was below the mean in targets, with 74 last season (14th). Not a bad ranking at the position, but was the second-least targets in his four year career, only to an injury-shortened 2023 season (44 targets). This means Freiermuth was targeted more his first two seasons, and I assume several would agree that narrative changing would benefit the offense.
One reason is being a reliable target, landing above-the-mean with 65 receptions (T-eighth) despite his lower target share. This puts Freiermuth as one of the furthest players above the trend line (diagonal line), meaning he was one of the best security blankets at the position in 2024.
Not that I’m advocating for him matching last years target leader in Raiders TE Brock Bowers, who exactly doubled Freiermuth at a whopping 148 targets, but enough recent success warrants more involvement.
To gain more context to Freiermuth’s reliability, here’s catch percentage and contested catch rates last season:
Clearly, we see that Freiermuth was the absolute best among qualifying TEs in both stats. His 87.8 catch percentage was three points higher than his peers (49er George Kittle 84.8), and he had an 85.7 contested catch rate. The latter was impressively over ten points more than the rest of the pack, with Raven Mark Andrews coming in at 75-percent.
There are many factors to how receiving stats come to fruition. But it’s quite undeniable that Freiermuth’s most recent resume points to a safety net that offensive coordinator Arthur Smith and whoever starts at quarterback for Pittsburgh in 2025 would be wise to get more involved.
