Batko sees Steelers’ TE room as ‘integral’ Pat Freiermuth and a bunch of ‘complementary pieces’

Pat Freiermuth and Darnell Washington were supposed to provide the Pittsburgh Steelers with a dynamic tight end tandem. Washington, after all, was a “bargain” as a third-round pick due to medical issues, not to mention his unproductive college stats. Heading into the 2024 season, however, many seem to be losing interest in the Steelers’ tight end position.

At least they see this as potentially Pat Freiermuth and a bunch of losers, with Freiermuth himself having a lot to prove before entering a contract year. Brian Batko of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette still believes the Steelers will sign him to an extension. And that’s partly because of how he views the rest of the front office.

“I think he’s going to be a critical piece of what they’re trying to do offensively in Arthur Smith’s system,” he said of Pat Freiermuth on 93.7 The Fan last week. “They’ve got a couple of good tight ends behind him in Darnell Washington and Connor Heyward, but I think they’re both complementary pieces. I don’t think either of them could really find themselves in a No. 1 role. Not Washington at this point in his career. Maybe he could get to that level at some point, but it just shows how valuable Freiermuth is to this team.”

A second-round pick in 2021, Pat Freiermuth is coming off a tough season marred by injuries. He caught just 38 passes for 308 yards and two touchdowns to start the season. After missing a good chunk of his season due to injury, he only had one big game and that was it.

It’s still unclear why the Steelers didn’t target Freiermuth more last year. He wasn’t even targeted four times per game, which is surprisingly low. To put that in perspective, in his first two seasons, he averaged nearly four times. receptions per game. He drew over six targets per game in 2022, so his usage rate has really dropped.

But the problem is, if Freiermuth doesn’t take a step forward in the passing game, who will, especially now? The Steelers have a low-end receiver cap, and Freiermuth could be their second target. Can Darnell Washington or Connor Heyward step up to a bigger, more impactful role? Or are they just complementary pieces who show up when needed and then go to the bench?

As a rookie, Washington had 10 targets all year despite playing every game, catching seven passes for 61 yards. Last season, Heyward had just 167 yards on 23 receptions with a completion rate below 50 percent. And don’t look to Rodney Williams or MyCole Pruitt to save the Steelers.

Of course, there’s a lot more to being a tight end than just catching passes. But if you’re just a blocking tight end, can you consider yourself anything more than a “complementary piece” in 2024? Even the most running-heavy teams aren’t putting their blocking tight ends on the field that a lot.