Steelers 2-a-days: Pat Freiermuth could ascend to stardom, good friend Zach Gentry an ideal complement

Editor’s note: From the end of minicamp through the day the team reports to training camp at Saint Vincent College, the Trib will be running through the Pittsburgh Steelers’ 90-man roster, assessing each player’s outlook for the 2023 season. The breakdown will go through the roster in mostly-alphabetical order, (at least) two per day, between June 16 and July 26. Contract data courtesy spotrac.com.

TE PAT FREIERMUTH

Experience: 3rd season

Contract status: $1.644 million cap hit in 2023, signed through 2024

2023 outlook: A drop in scoring production (seven touchdowns in 2021, two in 2022) noted, Freiermuth in his second season did nothing to dissuade the many who came away highly impressed by his rookie season after being a second-round pick. Though he might not achieve the rarefied air of the likes of Travis Kelce, a Pro Bowl berth seems in the future of the versatile and athletic Freiermuth.

That doesn’t mean everything was smooth in 2022. Aside from the drop in touchdowns, Freiermuth suffered his third concussion in an 11-month span and missed a game as a result. His catch percentage also dropped from 75.9% as a rookie to 64.3% last season, and some drops stood out after it seemed he caught everything thrown within his radius in 2021. Overall, though, Freiermuth’s arrow pointed up after he improved his yards per catch, yards per route run and average depth of target.

A big 2023 season by Freiermuth could pay off in the way of a hefty contract extension coming around this time next summer. Through two NFL seasons, he appears as if he indeed is the next Heath Miller, at least inasmuch as he can be a decade-long starter for the Steelers at tight end. If Freiermuth stays healthy and puts up numbers that are even merely similar to the average of what he did in 2021-22, the Steelers figure to give him a multi-year extension before the 2024 season starts.

"I think that we have a really good tight end group right now. We compete every single day and are excited to show it.”https://t.co/inhj2yJ1sh

— Chris Adamski (@C_AdamskiTrib) August 10, 2022

TE ZACH GENTRY

Experience: 5th season

Contract status: $1.233 million cap hit in 2023, after which scheduled for unrestricted free agency

2023 outlook: Gentry over the past two years developed into an ideal complement for Freiermuth as a strong blocker willing to slot into a No. 2 role. He actually started more games (13) than George Pickens (12) last season and played exactly 50% of the Steelers’ offensive snaps. But Gentry was thrown to just 23 times and finished with 19 receptions for the second consecutive year. His receiving yardage total actually went down from 167 in 2021 to 132 last season and that despite gaining 32 yards on his first catch of the season and 23 yards on his final grab. Between that impressive catch-and-run during the opener at Cincinnati and that first-down catch in the finale against Cleveland, Gentry managed just 77 receiving yards (at 4.5 per catch) over the other 15 games. Those were his only two receptions of more than 11 yards all season.

Gentry seemed to meet a tepid market in free agency, remaining unsigned for more than 10 days after the legal tampering period began. He eventually agreed to return to the Steelers on a one-year deal that wasn’t officially announced until April 4. At that point, it appeared secure Gentry would serve a significant role in conjunction with Freiermuth and second-year tight end Connor Heyward.

The calculus, though, changed in a big way when the Steelers drafted Darnell Washington in the third round. All of a sudden, Gentry’s greatest attributes were all but rendered moot, assuming Washington is what he has been advertised, at least. Washington (listed at 6-7, 264) has a higher ceiling as a blocker than Gentry (6-8, 265), and he is almost the same size. Washington also has more of a receiving element to his game.

Heyward seems destined to add fullback to his repertoire in addition to fine-tuning the nuances of H-back work. But if Washington develops quickly and Freiermuth stays healthy, it’s difficult to imagine there being enough TE snaps available for Gentry to again be on the field for half of the Steelers’ offensive plays.

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