For the second game in a row, TE Pat Freiermuth had a surprisingly small role in the Steelers’ offensive game plan. Once again playing around a third or the snaps or less, he has seen just one target since Week 3. Although coaches talk about schematics against bigger-bodied defensive fronts, this is typical usage of personnel.
The Steelers made Pat Freiermuth one of the 10 highest-paid tight ends in the league in 2024. Then they did the same with Jonnu Smith after trading for him in late June. Smith has the most snaps by a Steelers tight end thus far, but Darnell Washington has had the biggest role.
And one can argue that even Connor Heyward has had a bigger impact this year than has Freiermuth. After all, Heyward just made a nifty touchdown catch on a scramble drill from Aaron Rodgers. The scramble drill hasn’t been one of Freiermuth’s assets, admittedly. But to play just 36 snaps over a two-game span remains shocking relative to his perceived standing.
Perhaps not dissimilar to what the Steelers have going on at outside linebacker, they view the tight end room as having three starters. Pat Freiermuth and Jonnu Smith have both served in that role before. Darnell Washington is seemingly getting his first taste of that now, if skewed more toward blocking.
Ultimately, it doesn’t matter what the Steelers plan to do with Freiermuth as long as they’re winning. HC Mike Tomlin insists that Freiermuth is being a good teammate and that his time will come. But in the meantime, he has 8 catches on 11 targets for 76 yards and 0 touchdowns.
I don’t know if Freiermuth is just an expensive insurance policy at this point or if the Steelers really intend to concoct a unique game plan each week featuring personnel carefully selected to match up against each opponent. Every team does that, to some extent, and OC Arthur Smith is an advocate of that. Yet the Steelers also talk about focusing on themselves and forcing what they want to do on other teams.
So, then, do they not want to play Pat Freiermuth? More concerningly, do they not think that he can perform the duties they would want to ask him to do? Despite lip service to work on his blocking, he has never flourished, or really evolved, in that area. Of course, Jonnu Smith isn’t much of a blocker, either, but he offers more playmaking ability.
There isn’t any one thing that Freiermuth does extremely well, or even very well. That is the issue, especially in an offense with a diverse group of tight ends. His greatest strength is working within zone coverage, and he has shown a capacity to produce in the red zone. In theory, he should be an asset to Aaron Rodgers. Up to this point, however, he has been more of an enigma.
