Value. Value. Value.
That was the name of the game for the Steelers on Day 2 of the NFL Draft Friday.
The Steelers eschewed perhaps a more immediate need on the offensive line in the second round, instead taking Penn State tight end Pat Freiermuth at pick 55, then addressed the offensive line in the third round by selecting Illinois guard/center Kendrick Green at 87.
This came a day after the team opened the draft by taking running back Najee Harris with the 24th-overall selection.
If you get the idea the Steelers were all about improving their offense in this draft, you'd be 100 percent correct.
They also wanted to improve the energy and demeanor of their offense, something that was spoken about with both Freiermuth and Green. The Steelers don't want to be soft on offense. They want to deliver the blow.
The selection of Freiermuth came as a bit of a surprise, as only one center had been taken to that point -- Alabama's Landon Dickerson. The Steelers, who re-signed B.J. Finney in the offseason after the retirement of Maurkice Pouncey, were thought to be in the market for a potential starting center, but passed on Oklahoma's Creed Humphrey to select Freiermuth, a big, pass-catching tight end.
Freiermuth will help the Steelers replace another retiree, Vance McDonald.
"We feel like Pat can play in all of our packages," Steelers GM Kevin Colbert told me. "There aren't many tight ends who can line up in-line, outside, in the slot and also block in today's college game. Pat was one of those guys."
Freiermuth (6-5, 258 pounds) brings size and athleticism to the position and is the highest tight end drafted by the Steelers since they selected Heath Miller in the first round in 2005. Like Miller, Freiermuth might have slipped a little from where he might have normally been drafted because of an injury.
The Penn State star had a shoulder injury (torn labrum) that limited him to four games in 2020 and required surgery, keeping him from doing a full workout for NFL Scouts at the Penn State pro day.
But he was able to do enough there to make an impression on new Steelers tight end coach Alfredo Roberts.
"Had a chance to work with him at his Pro Day," Roberts said. "The energy he exudes, he is a serious but fun guy. He has some position flexibility. He will be kind of a throwback tight end because he can play the position and do some multiple things. You can flex him out. His positional flexibility is going to give us a chance to do a lot of different things and a lot of different sets with the guys that are already here."
The guys they already have would include receiving tight end Eric Ebron and youngsters such as Zach Gentry, a fifth-round pick in 2019, and practice squad players Kevin Rader, Charles Jones and Dax Raymond.
Freiermuth immediately ascends into no worse than No. 2 in that pecking order -- and given Ebron's lack of blocking prowess, Freiermuth could see more playing time than the veteran if he proves a valuable blocker and receiver.
If he can do that, Steelers fans will be happy with his contributions and perhaps give the Steelers their most complete tight end since Miller retired. Miller slipped to the Steelers at the 30th pick in the first round in 2005 because of a sports hernia that kept him from working out in the pre-draft process.
"My shoulder’s fully healthy. I got cleared a few weeks ago to do everything. Full contact, everything like that," Freiermuth said. "I think I got the surgery at the right time which allowed me to be fully healthy before my NFL career and rookie minicamp so I can go through that whole process and get my whole routine. I’m fully healthy. I’m ready to go and I’m excited to get into that offense and make some plays."
The Steelers felt they could pass on their other needs because of the depth at those spots -- specifically at center. And that proved to be the case when only two additional centers had come off the board -- Humphrey and Ohio State's Josh Myers -- by the time they selected Green.
There were other centers remaining, including Wisconsin-Whitewater's Quinn Meinerz and Stanford's Drew Dalman, who the Steelers liked. But they liked Green more.
"That’s a guy we had our eye on," said new offensive line coach Adrian Klemm, who moved into the job after serving as the assistant at the position the previous two years.
"We love the way that he plays in terms of what we have been talking about and in terms of changing our demeanor. Just the type of attitude that we want to carry onto the field, he embodies all of that. He has great leadership qualities. He was an alpha in that program, and he is just a tremendous player. He can do it all. The pulls, physical in the run game, pass protect, all those different things. I’m just really ecstatic to coach him going forward."
Unlike Freiermuth, Green was able to work out at his pro day and posted some impressive numbers. His 4.88-second 40-yard dash at 6-2, 305 pounds was one of the fastest put up by an offensive lineman this year. And his 10-yard split of 1.69 seconds shows up in the way he explosively comes off the ball.
A former defensive lineman -- he switched to offense after his freshman year -- Green still attacks like he's on defense.
"I feel like I’m the most athletic offensive lineman in this year’s class," said Green, who like Pouncey, the man he could eventually replace, wears No. 53. "I play with a mean streak. I’m looking to play physical and finish guys. So I think that’s something that will translate over well."
Green started just four games at center over the past two seasons at Illinois, seeing 28 starts at guard. But the Steelers see him as a pure center and look for him to challenge Finney for the starting spot right away.
"He is so athletic. He has great balance," Klemm said. "You know, some people could say that maybe he’s too aggressive at times, but I’d rather be that than have to beg him to be aggressive. He just runs off the ball, he’s not timid at all and he throws his hands. He can redirect. He’s got feet with a good center of gravity. His change of direction is excellent, and he just finishes plays with a nasty demeanor and imposes his will every play."
Paired with 2020 fourth-round pick Kevin Dotson, who is expected to start at left guard in place of Matt Feiler, who left in free agency, the Steelers could have a pair of road graders on the inside for years to come.
That's what Klemm is looking for.
"It just sets the tone, especially at that position," Klemm said of the physicality. "It’s the belly of the beast. He comes out and he’s playing with that type of demeanor, that carries throughout the group. If we play collectively like that, it is contagious on the team."