Pittsburgh Has A Lot Riding On A Pat Freiermuth Breakout
Credit: Philip G. Pavely-USA TODAY Sports
Disgruntled San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk wasn’t supposed to become gruntled again. Not this soon. It was supposed to be after the Pittsburgh Steelers made that long-speculated trade for the 1,300-yard wideout, not before. But Aiyuk messed it up, became gruntled, and got paid with a four-year contract that makes him the NFL’s latest $30 million receiver.
So, now what? The Steelers are back at square one, with talented deep threat George Pickens on one side of the field, and a lot of hope on the other. If we’re being honest, we don’t expect the Van Jefferson jerseys to be a hot commodity anytime soon.
Things would feel a lot better, however, if we could count the potential we on saw in the rookie version of Pat Freiermuth coming to fruition. Remember that guy? Back in 2021, the second-rounder made the jump from Penn St. to Pittsburgh and caught 60 passes on 79 targets for 497 yards and seven touchdowns. Maybe the yards weren’t crazy high, but Ben Roethlisberger had a 121.1 passer rating when targeting Freiermuth.
Since Big Ben’s departure, however, he’s struggled to make a big leap. He did catch 63 passes for 732 yards in 2022, but being a deeper threat didn’t make him more efficient. Pittsburgh’s QBs had a 76.6 rating on their 98 targets headed Freiermuth’s way, tossing more picks (four) than touchdowns (two). Injuries limited Freiermuth Version 2023.0 to just 32 catches, 308 yards, and two touchdowns.
Perhaps had Aiyuk, being a run-after-the-catch threat that could pair well with Pickens’ deep speed, actually landed in Pittsburgh the Steelers wouldn’t be desperate for Freiermuth to tap into and build on his rookie success. The door slammed shut on that luxury, however, and suddenly we’re seeing a lot more pressure on the young tight end.
Especially in Arthur Smith’s offense. Between Kyle Pitts and Jonnu Smith, the 2023 Atlanta Falcons saw 160 of their 530 passing attempts (30.2%) target their top two tight ends. Darnell Washington, although talented and raw, is no Jonnu Smith. If Pittsburgh is going to feature the tight ends with nearly the frequency Arthur Smith did in Atlanta, Russell Wilson will be dialing Freiermuth’s number nearly exclusively.
We expect more of he same in Pittsburgh. “One of the things he confirmed, this is not exactly breaking news, is Arthur Smith favors the tight end position,” Steelers.com’s Mike Prisuta said in training camp. “He likes getting tight ends involved. Alfredo Roberts told me Arthur Smith has been spending a lot of time in the tight end room meetings. They get the play sheet for these practices and there’s a lot of two- and three-tight end sets.”
Steelers insider Matt Fittipaldo of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette went on 93.7 The Fan this week to say as much. “I think we all know George Pickens is gonna lead this team in targets, in receptions, in yards. And then the No. 2 is up for grabs,” Fittipaldo laid out on Joe Starkey’s show. “It could be Pat Freiermuth getting No. 2 receiver-type targets and catches.”
Of course, not all No. 2 receiver workloads are created equal. With Najee Harris and Jaylen Warren at running back, the Steelers are poised to lean heavily on the run once again. Pittsburgh’s putrid offense put the ball in the air just 506 times in 2023, which ranked just 29th in the NFL last season. Pickens led the team with 106 targets, and their No. 2 option, current Carolina Panthers receiver Diontae Johnson, saw just 87 targets thrown his way.
At first, you might think Pittsburgh would be more willing to air it out with Wilson under center given the have a skilled coordinator. But, despite the QB’s personal desire to air the ball down the field and his disdain for his previous situation, it’s hhard to argue tthat Wilson has aways been efficient in run ffirst offenses. The 2023 Broncos, although not good, found their way to better Wilson play but were tied (with, funnily enough, Justin Fields‘ Chicago Bears) for 27th in the NFL with 513 passing attempts. Jerry Jeudy was the No. 2 target in Denver last season with 87 throws his way, while Fields’ second option wound up being tight end Cole Kmet, who saw 90 targets.
That’s not an overwhelming amount of responsibility, but the only time Freiermuth saw 90-plus targets was 2022, which made for his career-low in not just passer rating when targeted, but also Catch% (64.3). Wilson is going to need a much more reliable target than he showed, even in his “career year.”
Is it a comforting spot to be in for Pittsburgh? No. But at this point, they’re married to the current situation. As Fittipaldo told The Fan, “Barring a move — and really, what move could they make now? — but I think they’re going into the season with a below-average receiver unit, and I think they’re pinning their hopes that Pat Freiermuth will have a breakout year.”
We’ve seen pieces of it before. His rookie season saw him be a dangerous red zone threat. In his sophomore season, Pittsburgh saw a player who was able to get downfield and get yards. Now the Steelers are requiring him to put those qualities together and put their weak receiving corps on his back. With an extension on the horizon for the tight end and the Steelers’ playoff hopes relying on Smith to rejuvenate a struggling offense, there’s a ton riding on Freiermuth.
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