Steelers 2024 offseason roster – Linebacker

Here are all the Steelers linebackers currently on the roster heading into the offseason.

Last season the Pittsburgh Steelers had to deal with a mix of highs and lows from the linebacker position. At outside linebacker, T.J. Watt led the league in sacks but as inside linebacker, injuries rocked the depth chart.

Steelers HC Mike Tomlin feels good about Pat Freiermuth return vs. Browns

Kenny Pickett had some real chemistry working with Pat Freiermuth to start the season, and since he’s been sidelined, he hasn’t quite found it with any other receiver. 

Kenny Pickett had some real chemistry working with Pat Freiermuth to start the season, and since he’s been sidelined, Pickett hasn’t quite found it with any other receiver.

It appears Pickett and the Pittsburgh Steelers could have him back for Sunday’s critical divisional matchup with the Cleveland Browns.

In his press conference today, Mike Tomlin updated Freiermuth’s status, saying that he feels “good” about his tight end being activated from injured reserve this week.

“I feel good about Pat Freiermuth. We’ll watch him go through the week and look at the quality of his work and the amount of it and how he feels and let that be a determining factor but feel good about his potential availability.”

Freiermuth initially injured his hamstring in the team’s ugly Week 4 loss to the Houston Texans. It appeared he was ready to roll for Pittsburgh’s game Oct. 22 Los Angeles Rams, but the Steelers placed him on injured reserve the day before the game after he aggravated the injury in practice.

Having Freiermuth back could be just the boost that Pickett needs. For as little scoring as the Steelers did (and have done in his absence), Freiermuth was a significant part, responsible for two of their four offensive touchdowns.

Hamstring injuries have run rampant in the Steelers locker room. Diontae Johnson returned from IR as Freiermuth went on, and Minkah Fitzpatrick is at risk of missing his third consecutive game.

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Steelers could get Pat Freiermuth back in time for big Browns brawl

If it seems like Pat Freiermuth has been out forever, it’s because he has.

If it seems like Pat Freiermuth has been out forever, it’s because he has — half of the season, in fact. The Pittsburgh Steelers tight end initially injured his hamstring in the team’s ugly Week 4 loss to the Houston Texans.

It appeared he was ready to roll for Pittsburgh’s Oct. 22 Los Angeles Rams game, but his hamstring had other plans. The Steelers placed Freiermuth on injured reserve on Oct. 21 after reaggravating the injury in Oct. 19 practice.

Preparation for the Cleveland Browns on Nov. 19 will mark four weeks sidelined for Freiermuth. Per Alan Saunders of SteelersNow.com, he plans to return to practice next week, the first time he is eligible to be activated from IR. If things go better than last time — “I don’t want to jinx it” — he’ll suit up for the big Browns brawl.

And it could be just the boost that Kenny Pickett needs. For as little scoring as the Steelers did (and have done in his absence), Freiermuth was a significant part — responsible for two of their four offensive touchdowns.

Hamstring injuries have run rampant in the Steelers locker room. Diontae Johnson returned from IR as Freiermuth went on, and today’s game is the second Minkah Fitzpatrick has missed.

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5 things Pat Freiermuth’s injury means for the Pittsburgh Steelers

With Steelers tight end Pat Freiermuth Pat Freiermuth comes adjustments that’ll need to be made on the fly.

It was anticipated that the Pittsburgh Steelers would return from their Week 6 bye a fully healthy team (save Cam Heyward), but Pat Freiermuth‘s hamstring had other plans.

The team placed the veteran tight end on injured reserve Saturday. He’ll be sidelined for the next four games and could return for Pittsburgh’s critical road brawl with the Cleveland Browns in Week 11.

The news is huge for the offense, as Freiermuth was responsible for half of the team’s offensive scores.

Here are four things his injury could mean for the Pittsburgh Steelers going forward.

Injury to Steelers TE Pat Freiermuth creates a problem for his upcoming contract

Pat Freiermuth is headed to IR after suffering a hamstring injury.

On Saturday, the Pittsburgh Steelers announced that starting tight end Pat Freiermuth would be headed to IR due to a hamstring injury that caused him to miss the team’s Week Five game against the Baltimore Ravens. This means Freiermuth will miss this week’s game against the Los Angeles Rams and a minimum of the three games after that.

This means the earliest Freiermuth can return is for the Steelers Week 11 road showdown with the Cleveland Browns.

For Freiermuth, this is less than ideal for a guy who will enter into the final year of his rookie contract at the end of the season. The Steelers typically like to extend their top players a year out from allowing them to hit free agency the following season. Pittsburgh could still offer Freiermuth an extension in the offseason despite the problems he’s had this season. Unfortunately, it won’t be for the kind of money he might want.

In 2022, Freiermuth had his best season with 63 receptions for 732 receiving yards and two touchdowns. Had he been able to build off of that this season, there’s no doubt he would have gotten a big raise in an extension. But even before the injury, Freiermuth was off to a rough start.

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Pat Freiermuth ‘ready to roll’ for Week 7 vs. Rams, has high hopes for Steelers

Pat Freiermuth is healthy and feeling optimistic about the offense returning to preseason form.

After a one-game absence, Pat Freiermuth is set to take the field this week as the Pittsburgh Steelers battle the Los Angeles Rams, and he’s optimistic he’s not the only return. He feels the team can recapture the preseason magic when the offense was firing on all cylinders.

“It’s going to be awesome to get all of our people back,” Freiermuth said (via the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette’s Ray Fittipaldo). “Hopefully, we can get back to the form we were in camp. We’re all looking forward to it. It was a good little reset, and we’re ready to roll.”

It was initially reported that the third-year tight end would miss two to three weeks, but after practicing on Monday, he’s excited to get back out there. The offense missed him, as he was responsible for half of Pittsburgh’s four touchdowns at the time of his injury.

Freiermuth said he likely would’ve suited up if the Steelers had played in Week 6, but having that extra week was comforting.

“It was awesome to get the extra week and not having to worry about rushing back for a game,” he said. “I probably would have been able to play if we did play, but having that extra week — you know how hamstrings are — I was able to get to 100 percent.”

If all goes well with this week’s practice, the Steelers will get multiple members of their offense back, including wideout Diontae Johnson and guard James Daniels. Tackle Dan Moore Jr. (MCL sprain) also returned to practice with the starters.

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Report: Steelers TE Pat Freiermuth to miss multiple weeks with hamstring injury

The Pittsburgh Steelers are down another player thanks to a pesky hamstring injury.

The hamstring bug has once again hit the Pittsburgh Steelers. While Diontae Johnson works his way back from the Week 1 injury that landed him on injured reserve, tight end Pat Freiermuth is just beginning. Per Pittsburgh Post-Gazette’s Gerry Dulac, Freiermuth is expected to miss two to three weeks. He exited midway through the third-quarter loss to the Houston Texans

We’ve barely heard a peep from the unit’s star for all the offseason reports of the Steelers employing multiple tight end sets in the 2023 season. He’s scored twice in four games and has eight receptions for 53 yards.

While his absence will be felt, Pittsburgh’s likely to utilize second-year tight end Connor Heyward and rookie Darnell Washington more — which could be a breath of fresh air. They’ve both shown to be better blockers than Freiermuth seems capable.

If all goes well, the Steelers’ 55th overall pick could return after the bye for their Week 7 matchup versus the Rams in Los Angeles.

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Steelers TE Pat Freiermuth reveals what pumps him up post-catch

Steelers TE Pat Freiermuth says this gets him FIRED UP after a catch.

It didn’t take long for Steelers Nation to adorn tight end Pat Freiermuth with a nickname.

Just as fans chanted “HEEEAAATH!” after Pittsburgh Steelers great Heath Miller made a play, they chant “MUUUUUTH!” when Freiermuth does.

The rookie said that teammate Cam Heyward pointed it out after making one of his first catches this season. “It was low,” Freiermuth told Steelers.com reporter Missi Matthews in an interview this season. “There were barely any people [chanting it], and I was confused, but I caught on pretty quick.”

Freiermuth said it got more noticeable as the season went on. “It gives me energy after I make a catch, and I love it.”

Freiermuth much rather prefers Muth over the other nickname he’s heard since high school.

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“I was called Baby Gronk, but I like Muth a lot better,” Freiermuth said.

When you’re a towering tight end born and raised a Patriots fan just outside of Boston, you’re bound to be called “Baby Gronk.”

It sounds as though the nickname Freiermuth loathes is fading with every catch.

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Steelers TE Pat Freiermuth: ‘See yinz Monday night’

MUUUUUUUUTH!!!

It appears that the Pittsburgh Steelers will have a missing piece of their offensive puzzle back ahead of their critical matchup with the Browns this week.

Pat Freiermuth self-declared he’s out of concussion protocol on his Instagram account. The rookie tight end posted a color rush picture on his IG page tonight with the caption, “See yinz Monday night.”

Freiermuth’s presence — especially in the red zone — was sorely missed as the Steelers were pummeled by the Kansas City Chiefs. Freiermuth was sidelined by a concussion he sustained in Week 17 at the hands of the Titans. It was the first game missed of his pro career and the second concussion in 30 days. Freiermuth took a big hit toward the end of the Bengals game but was good to go for the next game.

It’ll be great to have the playmaker back in the lineup. Freiermuth has scored seven of the team’s 21 passing touchdowns this season.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CYCwc-OuHfk/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

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Have the Steelers finally found Heath Miller’s replacement?

The Steelers may have finally found someone to fill the 6-5 void left by legendary tight end Heath Miller.

The Steelers may have finally found someone to fill the 6-5 void left by legendary tight end Heath Miller. The truth is, though, until the 55th pick of the 2021 NFL draft, they hadn’t tried very hard.

Five tight ends have donned the black & gold since Miller announced his retirement five years ago. Jesse James and Zach Gentry were both fifth-round selections, and Nick Vannett, Vance McDonald and Eric Ebron were each acquired via trade or free agency.

None has come close to duplicating the talent and effort of Miller. If anyone can do it, though, it’s Pat Freiermuth. Like Miller, Freiermuth is a 6-5 vertical threat who can — and will — make the tough catches. He makes up for his lack of athleticism by being physical at the point of attack.

It’s too early in the offseason to say how the Steelers will use the rookie tight end. Generally, a player at that position comes along slowly in the NFL, which could be to Freiermuth’s advantage. The Steelers obviously believe that Freiermuth has a future catching passes — they wouldn’t have drafted him if they didn’t. While his hands are certainly reliable, Freiermuth’s route-running skills leave a lot to be desired.

With all of the receiving weapons and the addition of running back Najee Harris, the Steelers should have the luxury of giving Freiermuth time to sharpen his route-running skills while he acclimates to game speed.

Usage could be a different story once in the red zone — Freiermuth was a scoring machine at Penn State, and it would be a shame to waste that potential.

Miller wasn’t too shabby in the red zone either. By the time he retired in 2015, he had racked up 45 touchdowns to add to 6,569 yards on 592 receptions.

Only time will tell if Freiermuth is the next best (tight end) thing since Miller, but Pittsburgh is the right place to make it happen.

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