Pat Freiermuth

Career StatsB+

Year	Team	GP	Rec	Yards	TD
Career		78	261	2,676	22
2025		17	41	486	4
2024		17	65	653	7
2023		12

Current Contract

Contract Value Index (CVI)

Earning a B- Contract Value Index, Pat Freiermuth's 4-year pact reflects how Pittsburgh valued the tight end position market at $12.1M AAV. The grade sits in awkward middle ground — his B+ performance grade justifies retention, but the restructuring midway through the deal signals the Steelers weren't entirely comfortable with the original economics or his production trajectory. His 2025 output of 486 receiving yards across 17 games is respectable floor production for a starter, but it's not the volume that typically commands premium tight end money, especially when shared target opportunities are in play. At 27 years old with five seasons under his belt, Freiermuth is squarely in the prime earning window for his position, yet the offseason narrative — centered on role frustration and scheme fit under new coaching — frames this contract as a calculated gamble on potential resurgence rather than a deal grounded in recent dominance. The CVI landing here reflects that tension: the Steelers committed to him structurally, but the restructure acknowledged a gap between his current market value and his original contract promise. With a new offensive regime now in place, this becomes a prove-it season where Freiermuth either justifies mid-tier starter money or risks entering a market defined by doubt.

Contracts in the Same Value Band

Other same-position deals the Contract Value Index also places in the B band — a quick read on where Pat's contract sits relative to comparable money.

Performance Analysis

Stacked against the TE field, Pat Freiermuth grades out at a B+ performance level for Pittsburgh. He remains a capable, durable starter in the middle of the tight end spectrum—a designation that feels increasingly incongruent with the narrative friction surrounding his role and usage. His 486 receiving yards across 17 games in the 2025 season reflects solid volume work, but the yard total underscores the core tension: those numbers are respectable for a complementary tight end, not the output of a player commanding the featured role he's publicly indicated he wants. At 27 years old and five seasons into his career, Freiermuth is squarely in his earning window, yet he enters 2026 at a crossroads—unquestioned as the starter with a restructured contract signaling organizational commitment, but hamstrung by the self-inflicted narrative wound of his mid-offseason comments about dissatisfaction. The arrival of Mike McCarthy's offensive scheme and the parallel presence of ascending Darnell Washington in the tight end room create genuine opportunity for Freiermuth to reset his production arc, but that bounce-back case depends entirely on whether he can translate organizational trust back into consistent output and suppress the role-based frustration that has clouded what should be a straightforward lead-up to the season. His community presence and the Steelers' decision to release, rather than add at tight end, are organizational votes of confidence—but this remains a defining season for his standing in Pittsburgh.

How Pat Compares at the Position

Pat Freiermuth ranks 22nd of 164 graded tight ends by performance. That slots Pat between Dalton Schultz (B+) just ahead and Theo Johnson (B) just behind.

Current Sentiment

Pat Freiermuth enters the 2026 season with a B- public perception — solid enough to reflect genuine organizational trust, but noticeably clouded by a friction narrative that has taken on a life of its own this offseason. The dominant storyline is his public admission of disappointment with his usage in Pittsburgh's scheme, a candid moment that forced the head coach into damage-control mode and gave the media exactly the kind of internal-tension hook it craves heading into a new season. That narrative friction is harder to dismiss given his C- performance grade, which signals that the frustration isn't just optics — there's a real gap between the role Freiermuth wants and what his production has justified, including 486 receiving yards across 17 games in the 2025 season, respectable but hardly the output of a tight end demanding a featured role. On the other side of the ledger, Pittsburgh's release of Jonnu Smith is the clearest possible organizational endorsement — the Steelers didn't add a competitor, they cleared the room — and his charitable work and community presence have kept his personal brand from taking any collateral damage. The signing of TE Chamon Matayer is a depth addition, not a threat, and it reads as roster housekeeping rather than a vote of no confidence. Ultimately, Freiermuth sits in a genuinely uncomfortable narrative space: the unquestioned starter on a team that has committed to him, yet a player who has voluntarily injected a dissatisfaction storyline into what should be a straightforward lead-up to 2026 — the conversation around him is constructive, but it's not clean.