Pat Freiermuth must be Steelers starting TE to open the 2021 NFL season

Pat Freiermuth was fantastic in limited action against the Detriot Lions. Here’s why he must be the starter for the Pittsburgh Steelers to open the season. 

If you have been following along closely this summer then you probably already have a good idea of what I’m about to say about Pat Freiermuth. I’ll have to admit, I was a bit skeptical of the Penn State tight end at first. His route tree was extremely limited in college and it was hard to get an accurate feel of the player he would become in the NFL.

After watching him at Steelers training camp this summer at Heinz Field, it was easy to see what made Freiermuth so special. Though he’s not an elite athlete, he’s an incredibly smooth mover who can sell his routes. However, it’s his reliable pair of hands that have stolen the show.

Since showing up in a Steelers practice uniform, Pat Freiermuth has hardly allowed a single ball to slip through his grasp. He’s now carried his dominant showing in the passing game onto the preseason stage.

Against the Detriot Lions this past week, Freiermuth reeled in each of his first two targets for a pair of acrobatic touchdown catches. Despite having a defender in his hip pocket on both plays, the big tight end showcased the ability to effortlessly adjust to the ball in the air and pluck it out of the sky with soft hands.

This is something we have seen starting tight end, Eric Ebron, struggle with since joining the league all the way back in 2014. Unfortunately, it’s something he’s never really improved on, and the veteran consistently has one of the highest drop-rates in the league at the tight end position.

Like Freiermuth, Ebron had a solid performance against the Lions, but he had one big missed opportunity on a ball that was placed right in his chest. With Freiermuth looking so good this past week, many are hoping he could become the starting tight end from the gate.

Why Pat Freiermuth needs to start at TE for Steelers

We know that, inevitably, Pat Freiermuth is going to become the starting tight end in Pittsburgh. But why even delay that process? Though there are sure to be some mental lapses and missed assignments if he’s thrown into action, Freiermuth seems like he’s clearly the best option on the team.

In addition to Ebron’s shaky hands in the passing game, we know from experience that he’s an atrocious blocker, and sealing the edge on running downs is something he’s just never been able to do with any level of success.

Blocking isn’t Freiermuth’s strong suit at this point either, but there is much more potential here. In addition to being a bit bigger than Ebron, Freiermuth is infinitely more physical and isn’t lacking in willingness to throw his body into the mix. Though he needs to get stronger at the point of attack, Freiermuth already shows a lot of promise blocking from the ‘move’ tight end position, and he has the potential to block from the ‘Y’ tight end position as well.

This isn’t something that is going to come overnight. Unfortunately, evidence suggests that the transition from a college tight end to an NFL tight end is one of the hardest learning curves in the NFL and even elite prospects like O.J. Howard and David Njoku are still trying to figure it out. There is a lot of important assignments that go into playing the position and they are asked to line up all over the field.

There is going to be a learning curve for Pat Freiermuth, but I’m not sure if there’s really anything that Eric Ebron does better at this point in time. The rookie can be a beast in the red zone and has more to offer as a blocker. I think the Steelers would be wise to make Freiermuth the starter from the gate.