Pat Freiermuth couldn’t play for the Steelers and not draw comparisons to Heath Miller, so studying his game was inevitable. All Steelers tight ends who have followed Miller have done so, no doubt, including Jesse James and Zach Gentry. But Freiermuth didn’t have a choice, either, thanks to Ben Roethlisberger.
Asked by Donny Chedrick on Breaking Bread if he watches Heath Miller’s highlights, Pat Freiermuth spelled it out. “Yeah, I have watched them. When I first got here, Ben would show cut-ups of Heath and him”, he said. “You see [them] just talking through the game and just seeing how Heath saw it and the connection that Heath and Ben had was just unbelievable. Hell of a tight end”.
After the Steelers drafted Freiermuth, Roethlisberger immediately heard from Bruce Arians that he was the closest thing to Heath Miller. Even without that planted in his head, you know Roethlisberger would have wanted to emulate that.
Miller was Roethlisberger’s security blanket, and the Steelers drafted Freiermuth to be next in line. It only makes sense for him to study how Roethlisberger and Miller worked together, what made them great. And it didn’t hurt to hear from the man himself, as well, the two having since forged a relationship.
Pat Freiermuth had a strong rookie season with Roethlisberger, at times looking like Heath Miller. He caught 60 passes on 79 targets with seven touchdowns, albeit for only 497 yards. Roethlisberger retired after that season, so he hasn’t had the same level of quarterback play or indeed opportunities. But he did have a seven-touchdown season last year with Russell Wilson and Justin Fields.
Last year, Miller called Freiermuth “a quarterback’s best friend”, praising his knowledge of the passing game. Of course, until he has stability at the quarterback position, he can’t develop that years-long chemistry that becomes innate.
After a down season in 2023 plagued by injury, the Steelers showed their faith in Pat Freiermuth with a long-term extension. He signed a four-year, $48.4 million contract that pays him $12.1 million in new money. The 2025 season will mark the first year of that extension, and he will have Aaron Rodgers at quarterback.
Though Rodgers only showed up for the Steelers’ three-day minicamp, Freiermuth indicated he plans to work with his new quarterback in the downtime before training camp. You can bet that Rodgers has certain ideas of what he wants his security blanket tight end to do, too.
