Pat Freiermuth playing just 15 snaps in the Steelers’ Week 4 win in Dublin, Ireland, over the Minnesota Vikings was eye-opening, as Darnell Washington and Connor Heyward saw more snaps than he and fellow veteran TE Jonnu Smith did.
It was all a game-plan thing though as the Steelers saw an advantage against the Vikings’ defensive front and leaned heavily on their jumbo package with Washington and extra offensive lineman Spencer Anderson, pushing Minnesota in the run game.
That hasn’t stopped discussions about Freiermuth’s lack of usage and limited playing time this season. But as head coach Mike Tomlin explained Tuesday in his press conference, it was strictly a game-plan thing with Freiermuth and Smith’s limited snaps, nothing more.