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Pat Freiermuth comes up huge for Steelers in huge moment vs. Chargers

Matt Lombardo
Matt Lombardo

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Pat Freiermuth #88 of the Pittsburgh Steelers(Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)

In one of the biggest moments of Sunday night’s game for the Pittsburgh Steelers, rookie tight end Pat Freiermuth came up big with a touchdown catch 

Pat Freiermuth continues to emerge as one of Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger’s favorite targets.

Sunday night in Los Angeles against the Chargers, Freiermuth hauled in a screen pass from Roethlisberger at the nine yard line, before turning upfield for a touchdown to pull Pittsburgh into a 34-34 tie with the Chargers.

What makes Pat Freiermuth so special for Pittsburgh Steelers

Freiermuth has quickly developed into one of Roethlisberger’s favorite and most consistent weapons in the passing game.

“Pat is football smart,” Penn State Football head coach James Franklin recently told FanSided. “He understands concepts, doesn’t like football but loves football. He has natural ball-skills, great body control, is a loose and fluid athlete who is quarterback friendly and understands how to get open.”

Through the first 10 games of his NFL career, after being chosen in the second-round out of Penn State, Freiermuth has caught 36 passes for 287 yards and five touchdowns. The former Nittany Lion leads all rookie tight ends, including No. 4 overall pick Kyle Pitts, in receiving touchdowns.

Given the fact that Freiermuth has only three drops in 45 targets, it’s no surprise that Roethlisberger entered Sunday night with a 127.2 passer rating when targeting him.

Matt Lombardo

Matt Lombardo

Matt Lombardo, 35, is FanSided's National NFL Insider. Lombardo writes a weekly national NFL column each Wednesday and is the host of FanSided's The Matt Lombardo Show podcast. He has covered the NFL for various outlets since 2011, including as a beat reporter covering the New York Giants and Philadelphia Eagles for NJ Advance Media. A veteran of the Philadelphia sports talk radio scene, Lombardo still appears on various outlets including CBS Sports Radio, SiriusXM, Fox 5 in New York City, Cheddar News, and others.