The Pittsburgh Steelers are known for their defense that is full of stars, but there are some high-quality players on the offensive side of the ball as well. These weapons include Najee Harris, Jaylen Warren, George Pickens, and of course, Pat Freiermuth. Freiermuth is one of the most beloved players by the fan base in Pittsburgh, which is shown by the way Acrisure Stadium erupts every time Freiermuth touches the football. The tight end is having arguably the best season of his career in 2024, and has certainly risen the ranks of the best tight ends in the NFL.
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Steelers' Pat Freiermuth finds the end zone while beating the Cleveland Browns in 2024.
Freiermuth had a decent first two seasons in the league as he caught seven touchdowns during his rookie season in 2021 and had over 700 receiving yards in 2022. The tight end struggled with injuries in 2023 and didn't produce much, but he still signed a four-year extension ahead of the 2024 season. Some fans were skeptical of the deal due to the lack of success from the tight end during the 2023 season, but Freiermuth has certainly proved all the haters wrong.
On the most recent episode of New Heights, superstar tight end for the Kansas City Chiefs, Travis Kelce spoke about the Pittsburgh play-maker and gave him endless praise.
"Pat is actually, he is one of my favorite tight ends to watch man," Kelce said. "He's so savvy in his route running, he's very quarterback-friendly. He knows angles coming out where he knows he can get a guaranteed catch and quarterbacks love it when you can come out of your breaks with certain angles, depending on where the defender closest to you is."
This is obviously high praise coming from one of the best to ever play the position. Kelce has been arguably the best tight end in the league for the better part of the last decade, and he clearly sees a lot of good in the Steelers tight end. The fact that one of the best tight ends of all-time loves to watch Freiermuth and learn from him says a lot about how lucky the Steelers are to have their fourth-year standout locked up for a long time.
Taylor Ollason / Pittsburgh Steelers
Steelers tight end Pat Freiermuth celebrating after a big play against the Cincinnati Bengals in 2023.
Kelce has built his career off of improvising the majority of his routes, and just having great chemistry with his quarterback. That is all about taking certain angles that can give a tight end leverage against certain coverages, and Kelce sees a lot of that in Freiermuth. Kelce spoke more about the young tight end, specifically about his toughness and understanding of the game.
"He does a great job of feeling voids like that and feeling how he needs to get in and out of breaks," said Kelce. "And then on top of that, he's just a tough football player, man. I think he embodies the Steeler kind of way to play, which is like, it's that Steel Curtain, that toughness that you got to 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."
Freiermuth and Russell Wilson are beginning to build great chemistry together, and Kelce can see that with the way that Freiermuth is finding voids in the defense and Wilson is finding him. This is what Kelce and Patrick Mahomes have done for years, and it is clearly a winning formula on offense.
Jared Wickerham / Pittsburgh Steelers
Steelers' Pat Freiermuth runs with the ball during a win over the Cleveland Browns in 2024.
Steelers' Pat Freiermuth Is Having The Best Season Of His Career
As mentioned, Freiermuth is on pace to have the most balanced season of his career in 2024, which in turn would also be the best season of his career. His rookie year he caught a lot of touchdowns, but had under 500 receiving yards, and in 2022 he had over 700 yards, but just two touchdowns. In 2024, Freiermuth has already totaled five touchdown receptions and he is on pace for 615 receiving yards. That number can fluctuate of course, but the tight end has looked the best he has in his career since signing his new deal.
What do you think about Kelce's comments? Let us know in the comments below!
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