Steelers TE Pat Freiermuth (hamstring) was a full participant in Wednesday's practice. He's on track to return for this weekend's game against the Rams' 31st-ranked TE defense.
Steelers TE Pat Freiermuth (hamstring) has been ruled out for Sunday’s game vs. the Ravens. Pittsburgh has a Week 6 bye, and Freiermuth should have a chance to be back for Week 7. His absence this weekend leaves TE duties to Darnell Washington and Connor Heyward. Neither is a reliable fantasy play.
Steelers TE Pat Freiermuth is expected to miss 2-3 weeks with his hamstring injury, according to The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette's Gerry Dulac. The Steelers have a Week 6 bye, so it's possible that Freiermuth ends up missing just one game. He'll be replaced by some combination of rookie TE Darnell Washington and TE Connor Heyward. Neither guy is a recommended fantasy add.
Steelers QB Kenny Pickett "will miss some time" with his knee injury, according to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport. How much time will depend on the results of Monday's MRI. The Steelers don't believe Pickett's ACL is damaged, but there's concern about the MCL and meniscus, Rapoport says. "The belief is that this is not a season-ending situation." We should have a more concrete timeline for Pickett's return by the end of Monday. QB Mitchell Trubisky will step in as Pittsburgh's starter for however long Pickett is out. Trubisky completed 65.0% of his passes at 7.0 yards per attempt across four starts and seven total appearances for the Steelers last year.
Steelers TE Pat Freiermuth has been knocked out of Sunday's game vs. the Texans with a hamstring injury. We'll look for an update on the severity.
Steelers WR George Pickens led the team in receiving with 75 yards and 4 catches in Week 3’s win vs. the Raiders. Second-year wideout Calvin Austin III had a nice performance as well, hauling in 2 of 6 targets with a 72-yard TD. Fantasy managers also saw a bounce back from TE Pat Freiermuth in the contest. He totaled 3 catches for 41 yards and a score on Sunday night. This is the best that the Steelers’ passing offense has looked all season. Still, we’re not going to get overly excited about this one, given the poor state of the offense. We’ll see if this unit can build upon their achievements in Week 4 vs. the Texans.
The Steelers announced on Monday that WR Diontae Johnson (hamstring) is being placed on IR. The veteran wideout will now miss at least the next 4 games of the season. Johnson sustained this injury during the second half of Week 1 vs. the 49ers and didn't return to the contest. He also hadn't participated in practice at any point this week leading up to the Steelers' Week 2 primetime game vs. the Browns. Without Johnson in tow, the Steelers will look to see increased efforts from WRs Allen Robinson and Calvin Austin. Neither player is worth considering in most 10 or 12-team formats, though they are decent speculative deeper league adds. Expect to see a small bump in responsibility for TE Pat Freiermuth to supplement Johnson's contributions as a lower aDOT player in the Steelers' offense.
Steelers TE Pat Freiermuth (chest) practiced all week and isn't listed on the final injury report for Monday night's game vs. the Browns. He should be leaned on more heavily with WR Diontae Johnson out.
Steelers TE Pat Freiermuth (chest) got in a limited practice on Thursday. He was in and out of last week's game with this chest injury but should be available for Monday night's meeting with the Browns.
Steelers insider Gerry Dulac hears that WR Diontae Johnson is expected to miss four weeks with his hamstring injury. If that's the case, we could see Johnson land on IR on Saturday. He's still worth keeping stashed on fantasy benches. Johnson's absence opens up opportunity for WRs George Pickens, Allen Robinson, and Calvin Austin, plus TE Pat Freiermuth.
Steelers WR Diontae Johnson is expected to miss “a few weeks” with a hamstring injury, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter. Allen Robinson led the Steelers in targets and yards on Sunday. But for now, George Pickens and Pat Freiermuth remain the only pass catchers worth using in fantasy lineups. Just note: Week 2 turns up a tough test vs. a Browns defense that just dominated the Bengals.
Steelers WR Diontae Johnson logged 3 catches on 6 targets for 48 receiving yards in Sunday’s loss vs. the 49ers. He looked to be on his way to leading the team in receiving prior to a third-quarter hamstring injury that saw him exit the contest for good. TE Pat Freiermuth caught a 3-yard TD at the end of the first half (his only catch on 4 targets) before being forced out of the game due to a chest injury. It’ll be vital for fantasy managers to stay on top of the injury reports this week in case either play misses Week 2 vs. the Browns. WRs Calvin Austin III (6 catches, 37 yards) and Allen Robinson (5 catches, 64 yards) both saw a lot of involvement by the end of Week 1, so perhaps they’ll be names to keep an eye on for waiver wire consideration.
Steelers TE Pat Freiermuth is questionable to return to Sunday's game vs. the 49ers with a chest injury. We'll update his status when we know more.
Update: Freiermuth returned to the game.
Steelers TE Pat Freiermuth has shown a ton of promise in his NFL career so far. He finished last season as the TE11 in PPR points per game (9.3) in a less-than-stellar offense. Though he logged nine top-12 weekly finishes with a pair of top-24 finishes, Freiermuth finished as a TE3 or worse in his other five games in 2022. But when you look under the hood, his production profile looks much better. Among 27 TEs who received 50+ targets in 2022, Freiermuth ranked sixth in Pro Football Focus receiving grade, sixth in target share (19.6%, sixth in air yards share (19.7%), and sixth in yards per route run (1.68). Better yet, he led the Steelers in targets per route run rate (23%), ranked sixth among all TEs in targets per game (6.2), and seventh in target share (20.9%) following the Week 9 trade that sent WR Chase Claypool to the Bears. What makes Freiermuth's feats in that stretch of time even more impressive is that he ranked 22nd in snaps player per game among TEs (47.8) during that period. Whether or not fantasy managers believe in the strength of the Steelers' offense, QB Kenny Pickett developed a strong relationship with Freiermuth that puts him in fairly high standing in our current TE rankings. Take a chance on him in the later rounds of your drafts this season.
Steelers TE Pat Freiermuth is dealing with an undisclosed injury, per beat writer Brian Batko. “He’s frustrated because he has something that’s kind of slowed him down from having a good camp,” TE coach Alfredo Roberts said. “He was having a really good camp. He’s missed in the red zone, for sure.” Freiermuth says he’ll be ready for training camp. But before that, he'll take part in a different camp — “Tight End University” — led by Greg Olsen, George Kittle, and Travis Kelce. Freiermuth remains a top-8 option in our TE rankings.
The Steelers morphed into a run-heavy offense over the second half of last season, ranking sixth in rush rate. It sounds like the plan is to continue in that direction this year. “I think our identity was pretty clear the last nine games (of 2022),” OC Matt Canada said. “We ran the ball well, we were physical. You see who we drafted, who we acquired (this offseason). I don’t think there is any question about what our identity is going to be. We want to run the ball, we want to be physical, and we want to be a good team that can throw the football down the field. I think our identity is well known, and we’ll stay where we’re at.” The Steelers spent the 14th overall pick of this spring's draft on OT Broderick Jones and signed free-agent G Isaac Seumalo to bolster the offensive line. They return RBs Najee Harris and Jaylen Warren, who will presumably be busy this year. Both guys are fine picks at ADP. The run-heavy plan is worrisome for QB Kenny Pickett, WRs Diontae Johnson and George Pickens, and TE Pat Freiermuth.
Steelers beat writer Mark Kaboly believes TE Pat Freiermuth will reach 100 catches in 2023. Call it a truly bold prediction. Over the past 10 years, only Travis Kelce, Mark Andrews, Darren Waller, and Zach Ertz have tallied at least one 100-catch season. Freiermuth hit 60 and 63 catches over his first two NFL seasons. Check the TE rankings to see our detailed projections for Freiermuth.
The Steelers selected Georgia TE Darnell Washington in Round 3 of the 2023 NFL Draft. Washington’s college numbers aren’t great; he topped out with 28-454-2 last season. But you have to at least take notice of a TE that averaged 16.2 yards per catch. Of course, playing alongside the best TE in the country — Brock Bowers — didn’t help boost production. Washington also goes a supersized 6’7, 264 pounds, so he was heavily utilized as a blocker. That figures to be a key part of his NFL role, especially alongside Pat Freiermuth. We’ll also have to keep an eye on Washington’s health following reports of knee trouble.
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