Pittsburgh Steelers’ veteran tight end Pat Freiermuth was not getting targets last season, and he wasn’t happy. Head coach Mike Tomlin, when asked about it, always seemed to have a reason ready. Even after 13 weeks of the same blueprint, Freiermuth still maintained a professional air – even though he admitted he was frustrated with the lack of targets. But when their third straight playoff run ended at the Wild Card round, he’d had enough.

“I would say I’m disappointed in the lack of opportunities I was given,” he said at the time.

As it turns out, the front office felt the same way.

“They invested in Pat two offseason ago, and I don’t think the front office was happy with his playing time or his production from last year,” Steelers insider Ray Fittipaldo said on 93.7 The Fan. “I do think that Pat Freiermuth will get a bigger share of the snaps this year. I think he will get more opportunities than he did in the past.”

Fittipaldo did not name anyone directly, but the 2025 Steelers offense fell squarely on Mike Tomlin and offensive coordinator Arthur Smith. It was Smith’s job, under Tomlin’s supervision, to get the most out of the weapons around veteran quarterback Aaron Rodgers. But Freiermuth’s snap counts told a different story.

The Steelers had handed him a 4-year, $48M deal in September 2024, locking him in through the 2028 season. That same year, across 17 games and 11 starts, he took 776 offensive snaps (69%) and 81 (18%) on special teams – both career-high numbers. But last season, those numbers dropped to just 8 starts, 522 (51%) offensive snaps, and 32 (7%) special team snaps.

Last year, Aaron Rodgers’ target only had 486 receiving yards on 54 targets. In the first four games last season, Aaron Rodgers had only targeted Freiermuth 10 times.

Mike Tomlin, when asked about the lesser opportunities, had multiple reasons to justify his stance. Earlier in the season, after the Steelers faced the Minnesota Vikings in Week 4, Coach Tomlin said facing 4-3 schemes required heavier tight ends, citing Darnell Washington’s increased role in that game.

“You can’t play 4-3 teams with 250-pound tight ends. You can’t,” Tomlin said. “Their weight class is in combat sports for a reason. When the edge people are 300 pounds, you better have somebody out there that looks like that animal. That was our intention (against) Minnesota.”

After the Wild Card loss, as Freiermuth lamented his lack of targets, Coach Tomlin was blaming the lack of third-down conversions.

Now, in a new system led by head coach Mike McCarthy, Fittipaldo believes Pat will get more looks just like before. Back in early June, fellow Steelers insider Gerry Dulac had also highlighted how tight ends can shine under McCarthy:

“Tight ends in McCarthy’s offenses, both in Green Bay and Dallas, have typically been the second-leading receivers on the team,” Dulac noted. “Look for Freiermuth’s numbers to jump back to where we have become accustomed.”

But the Steelers have also invested a lot in Darnell Washington this offseason – handing him a four-year, $42M extension in June. Darnell is younger, more physical, and stands as Freiermuth’s direct competition in the depth chart. Regardless of that, Fittipaldo sees progress for both tight ends this season.

“It’s going to be close,” Fittipaldo said. “And I don’t think it matters who the starter is between Freiermuth and Washington is. I think both of those tight end will be playing a lot.”

When Aaron Rodgers first signed with the Steelers last offseason, Pat Freiermuth was “excited to get to understand what he’s seeing coverage-wise underneath and in the middle of the field and throwing me open and stuff.” But he never got to play to his heart’s content. Now, Rodgers is reunited with his old coach, McCarthy, and entering year 2 with the Steelers, familiar with the system. If there was ever a season for Freiermuth to prove he can ball with Rodgers & Co., this is it.