
Pat Freiermuth wasn't a fan of Najee Harris' Steelers criticism
Najee Harris' sour grapes with the Pittsburgh Steelers were on full display during his first few media appearances with his new team—the Los Angeles Chargers—and Pat Freiermuth took exception to his close friend's comments.
Appearing on The Christian Kuntz Podcast, Freiermuth expressed overall excitement for the next chapter of Harris' career but was less than thrilled with his post-Steelers criticisms:
'It's going to be tough, but I'm happy for [Harris] and his new opportunity. I didn't agree with the way he went out. I called him about it and we talked. Every guy is different.'
Freiermuth is, of course, referencing Harris' criticism of the Steelers' training facility and the team's inability to form a consistent offensive identity during his four years in the Steel City.
The big Steelers tight end even jokingly offered a challenge to the new Chargers running back ahead of Pittsburgh's 2025 trip to Los Angeles:
'We play L.A. this year. You know he's going to be running hard—but we're going to be hitting him harder.'
While Freiermuth and Harris cleared the air, the former Steelers running back will likely have some explaining to do when he lines up across from the Steel City defense this season.
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New York Times
6 minutes ago
- New York Times
Jalen Ramsey's new role takes shape, Aaron Rodgers sharp: Steelers training camp observations
LATROBE, Pa. — Ahead of the 2016 NFL Draft, coach Mike Tomlin was searching for impact players to upgrade a secondary in transition. The two safeties who anchored Super Bowl defenses, Troy Polamalu and Ryan Clark, had retired. Same with cornerback Ike Taylor. Considering the need at both positions, what better place to start than with a versatile defensive back rated the No. 1 safety and the No. 1 cornerback on the Steelers' draft board: Florida State's Jalen Ramsey. Advertisement 'I remember at the time I was broke,' Ramsey said. 'I was taking any meal, any meeting I could have. I remember they took me to dinner, and it was a super cool meeting. I remember them saying something like, 'We're not going to be able to draft you, but we'll still get you a free meal.'' As predicted, Ramsey heard his name called early in the first round, going fifth overall to the Jacksonville Jaguars. (The Steelers ultimately settled on cornerback Artie Burns at No. 25 overall, and followed it with another defensive back, Sean Davis, in the second round.) While Tomlin didn't have a chance to draft Ramsey, that meeting left an impression. 'His line of questioning was really impressive,' Tomlin said. 'Sometimes, just the nature of the questions are attractive. He had good, educated questions. He asked about things that are really pertinent to being successful in football and in this league. When they're in the right neighborhood from a question standpoint, that gives you a good insight into their mindset and definitely he's confirmed that over the course of his career.' Nearly a decade later, that early relationship-building paid off. About a month ago, the Steelers pulled off a blockbuster trade, dealing safety Minkah Fitzpatrick in exchange for tight end Jonnu Smith and Ramsey. Ramsey's résumé speak for itself. Seven Pro Bowls. Three first-team All-Pro accolades. A Super Bowl ring. But because the Steelers shipped off a safety in the trade, the addition also came with a question mark: Where would Ramsey play in a new-look Steelers secondary? 'I'm going to play football,' Ramsey said, sidestepping the question. 'We're going to figure that out together, huh?' Through two unpadded practices at Saint Vincent College, that puzzle is starting to come together. The Steelers have been playing a heavy dose of nickel defense with Ramsey in the slot. Meanwhile, Joey Porter Jr. and Darius Slay have lined up outside. DeShon Elliott has played strong safety and Juan Thornhill has been in the post at free safety. Advertisement Even when he's penciled into one position on the depth chart (nickel), Ramsey has the chance to impact the game in a variety of ways. On some plays, he's followed slot receivers or tight ends in motion. Other times, he's dropping into an underneath zone or he's blitzing off the edge. In addition to those traditional assignments, the Steelers use Ramsey's versatility to disguise coverages, as they've done in the past. As camp continues, sometimes Ramsey might be the middle runner in a non-traditional Tampa 2, the post safety in a disguised coverage, or a half-field safety. Because Ramsey is a physical defensive back who has never been afraid to deliver a blow, the Steelers may be able to play nickel against a wider variety of offensive personnel groupings; it's a trend in the league to play nickel against 12 personnel (two tight ends). Pittsburgh should have no hesitations about having Ramsey be part of the run fit. Tomlin calls Ramsey 'a football player first and a positional player second.' That's been true when the Steelers have gone to their base defense. He's often been the post safety patrolling the deep middle with Porter and Slay on the outside and Elliott in the box as the down safety. In this deployment, the Steelers are able to keep their four best defensive backs on the field together at the same time, as Tomlin promised on report day. 'Over the course of his career, you've seen him do a variety of things, play inside and play out,' Tomlin said. 'All the components of the game. Man-to-man coverage. Run support. He has an appetite for it all. I think that's why we were excited when he came out and that's why we continue to have that level of excitement about him.' Schematically, Tomlin believes the strength of this new-look secondary should allow the Steelers to play more man coverage. Especially against a team like the Bengals, who have multiple dynamic receiving threats; the Steelers could be better positioned to handle Joe Burrow's many weapons. Advertisement 'This is a coverage league,' Tomlin said. 'You need unbelievable depth and talent at the cornerback position, because people have it in their receiver corps…. That's what is exciting to us, our ability to match up and play man to man against anyone in this game. I think it's going to do nothing but strengthen our schematics, the supplemental things, the zone pressures, the bogus pressure and things of that nature.' While Ramsey's versatility gives the Steelers another high-level candidate to play free safety, the team still needs to figure out how the rest of the depth chart comes together. On Friday, they added more depth and competition when they signed Chuck Clark. The 30-year-old, seven-year veteran spent his first six season in Baltimore before playing last season with the New York Jets. 'He's a veteran player, a guy that's experienced in the NFL, a guy that we're familiar with from competing against (Baltimore),' Tomlin said. '(We're) excited about getting him in the fold and giving him an opportunity.' As it stands now, veteran Miles Killebrew and undrafted rookie Sebastian Castro have been taking the majority of the second-team reps at safety. While Killebrew is more of a strong safety by body type, the safety positions are somewhat interchangeable in the Steelers' scheme, so both he and Castro have played in the box and in the post. Clark now enters the fold as another option, especially at free safety. He was sprinkled into action before a thunderstorm cut practice short, playing mostly with the third-team defense for now. Throughout the course of camp, we'll get a better idea of which safety fits where behind the top candidates. No drill gets more attention during Steelers training camp than Seven Shots — Tomlin's signature period during which the offense has seven chances from the 2-yard line. After skipping the drill on Day 1, the Steelers unveiled it for the first time on Friday. On the first play, center Zach Frazier's errant snap flew past Aaron Rodgers. After that rough start, the Steelers gave the offense a mulligan and Rodgers' unit recovered to win the day, 4-3. 1. Rodgers completed a quick out to DK Metcalf with Slay in coverage. (1-0 offense) 2. Rodgers attempted a back-shoulder fade for Metcalf that fell incomplete. Joey Porter Jr. was in good position in coverage. (1-1) 3. Mason Rudolph looked for Ke'Shawn Williams on a crossing route. The QB put the pass high, where only the receiver could get it, but Williams was unable to make the catch. (2-1 defense) 4. Rudolph connected with Scotty Miller on a quick slant. (2-2) 5. Will Howard's fade to Brandon Johnson fell incomplete with Cory Trice Jr. in coverage. (3-2 defense) 6. Howard connected with undrafted free agent tight end JJ Galbreath, who did an excellent job of high-pointing the football at the goal line. (3-3) 7. With the score tied, Rodgers came back in. The QB found Pat Freiermuth for the score. (4-3 offense) Advertisement After beginning Thursday's team period with an interception, the 41-year-old quarterback's performance during Seven Shots was part of a much sharper day. Rodgers went 2-for-3 in Seven Shots then, unofficially, went 6-for-7 during two 11-on-11 periods. The biggest completion of the day was a deep out to Calvin Austin III. The Steelers aren't wasting any time getting first-round pick Derrick Harmon into action. The former Oregon Duck has stepped right into the starting lineup as the 4i technique (inside shoulder of the tackle) on the defensive left, where he's often alongside T.J. Watt. Maybe more notably, when the Steelers go to their four-man front in sub packages Harmon has been one of the two interior defensive linemen. Odds are, the Steelers will rotate Cameron Heyward, Keeanu Benton and Harmon on the interior when they're in nickel or dime, as they have through two days of camp. It will be interesting to watch which of these players gets the most playing time as the season unfolds. Because Harmon brings pass-rush upside (he led all FBS interior defensive linemen in pressures with 55 last year, according to PFF), he has the requisite skillset to be a three-down contributor. While the Steelers carried four tight ends last year, Galbreath has his work cut out for him to make the team. So far, the undrafted tight end capitalized on his chances and has begun to form early chemistry with Howard, who has been taking the fourth-team snaps. On Day 1, Galbreath was Howard's favorite target. During Seven Shots on Day 2, the tight end's reaching grab was one of the highlights. Galbreath, who played a variety of roles at South Dakota, brings an intriguing athletic profile at 6-3 and 231 pounds. At his Pro Day, Galbreath's 4.61 40-yard dash and 4.20 shuttle time would have been the fastest among tight ends who tested at the combine. He also would have been tied for the second-best vertical (38 inches) and third in the broad jump (10-3). However, he also posted just 12 bench press reps, which suggests he's more of a receiving threat than an in-line blocker. Connor Heyward still is the favorite to claim the fourth tight end spot, but Galbreath could make things interesting. Cory Trice Jr., who will play a variety of roles in the secondary, has been taking second-team reps at outside corner, along with offseason addition Brandin Echols. Trice had a strong day on Friday. He was in good position when targeted during Seven Shots and later played through a receiver's hands for a pass breakup during a team period. Meanwhile, seventh-round pick Donte Kent, an undersized DB in a competition at nickel, also put a nice rep on film. He followed a receiver in motion, communicated a push alert and then closed quickly to break up a pass. Advertisement Jonnu Smith remains sidelined with an injury; Tomlin is calling him day-to-day. Smith took part in stretching and caught some passes off the JUGs machines but didn't do any individual or team drills. Punt returner/running back/receiver Cordarrelle Patterson and left guard Isaac Seumalo also have yet to participate in any team drills.


USA Today
an hour ago
- USA Today
Steelers HC Mike Tomlin drops hilarious Tomlinism on Aaron Rodgers at training camp
The Tomlinisms are alive and well at Steelers training camp. At Thursday's press conference, HC Mike Tomlin addressed how the Steelers will maintain their identity and culture after bringing in an accomplished veteran like Aaron Rodgers — dropping a hilarious one-liner for reporters. "When in Rome, he's going to be Roman," Tomlin said. "And it's our job to teach how we do things." Tomlin made it clear that he doesn't run from the challenge of educating new arrivals on what it means to be a Steeler — he embraces it, stating that the players have been receptive to learning the Pittsburgh way. The longtime head coach will tell you himself — talk only gets you so far. And with a completely overhauled roster, the Steelers' opportunity to silence the doubters and make a deep playoff run feels inevitable. For up-to-date Steelers coverage, follow us on X @TheSteelersWire and give our Facebook page a like.


USA Today
2 hours ago
- USA Today
AI makes game-by-game predictions for Patriots 2025 season
For the last few years, the New England Patriots have somehow managed to draw the short straw from the NFL scheduling gods. They've been one of the worst teams in the league faced with one of the hardest schedules. But their fortunes have seemingly changed for the better. Not only did coach Mike Vrabel throw on the red cape to help save the flailing franchise, but the scheduling gods blessed them with one of the easiest schedules in the league. Of course, that doesn't mean much if the team fails to live up to expectations. I shared my game-by-game predictions for the Patriots in 2025 after the schedule release back in May. This time, we are turning to the AI assistant Grok to predict the Patriots' final record at the end of the season. Week 1: Sept. 7 vs. Las Vegas Raiders (1:00 p.m. ET CBS) The Patriots open the season at home against the visiting Las Vegas Raiders. Much has changed for the Raiders in the offseason with Pete Carroll stepping in as the new head coach and the team signing veteran quarterback Geno Smith. Will that be enough to change their fortunes in 2025? Week 2: Sept. 14 at Miami Dolphins (1:00 p.m. ET CBS) The Dolphins seem to be falling apart before the season even begins. They traded tight end Jonnu Smith and cornerback Jalen Ramsey to the Pittsburgh Steelers. Veteran corner Artie Burns also recently went down with a scary knee injury. With that said, this game is in Miami, and even when Tom Brady was under center, South Beach has long been a house of horrors for New England. Week 3: Sept. 21 vs. Pittsburgh Steelers (1:00 p.m. ET CBS) The Pittsburgh Steelers went all in on a potential Super Bowl run in the offseason, including signing legendary quarterback Aaron Rodgers to a deal. This isn't the same Rodgers from the glory days, and even though the team is loaded defensively, there are still serious offensive concerns. Week 4: Sept. 28 vs. Carolina Panthers (1:00 p.m. ET FOX) The Carolina Panthers were one of the worst teams in the league last season. There is no such thing as a sure thing in the NFL, but these are the kinds of games the Patriots need to start winning more consistently to demonstrate a real culture shift. This feels like a must-win game at home if New England hopes to make some real noise this season. Week 5: Oct. 5 at Buffalo Bills (8:20 p.m. ET NBC) The Patriots have been big-brothered by quarterback Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills ever since Tom Brady took his talents to Tampa Bay. There's hope that the tide could turn at some point with the arrival of Drake Maye. However, a road Sunday Night Football game in Week 5 at Buffalo might be too tough to overcome for a rebuilding Patriots team. Week 6: Oct. 12 at New Orleans Saints (4:25 p.m. ET CBS) The Saints have a rookie coach and rookie quarterback heading into the 2025 season. It's a Hail Mary attempt at breathing new life into a franchise that hasn't been to the playoffs since 2020. Things are far from perfect in New England, but they are in much better shape than the Saints. Week 7: Oct. 19 at Tennessee Titans (1:00 p.m. ET CBS) Patriots coach Mike Vrabel would probably never say it publicly, but he likely has this game circled in red. He will be returning to Tennessee for the first time as an NFL head coach to face the team that fired him in 2024, after six seasons. It would be a measure of revenge to go into Tennessee and hand them a loss in the first matchup between Drake Maye and Titans rookie quarterback Cam Ward. Week 8: Oct. 26 vs. Cleveland Browns (1:00 p.m. ET FOX) The Cleveland Browns are one of the best defensive teams in football, but there are more questions than answers on the offensive side of the ball. This is a team with five quarterbacks currently on its roster. If the Patriots' offense can avoid imploding at the hands of Myles Garrett and company, they'll have a real shot at coming out on top in this AFC matchup. Week 9: Nov. 2 vs. Atlanta Falcons (1:00 p.m. ET CBS) The Atlanta Falcons appear to be moving on from the short-lived Kirk Cousins era and going all in on Michael Penix Jr. as their starting quarterback. Penix appeared in five games last season, but this will be his first year as the guy in Atlanta. That bodes well for a Patriots defensive unit that should be significantly improved in 2025. Week 10: Nov. 9 at Tampa Bay Buccaneers (1:00 p.m. ET CBS) Grok has the Patriots' four-game win streak coming to an end on the road against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Quarterback Baker Mayfield has an embarrassment of riches on the offensive side of the ball in Tampa Bay, and a less-than-stellar defensive performance from New England could end badly for the Patriots on the road against a potential playoff contender. Week 11: Nov. 13 vs. New York Jets (8:15 p.m. ET Prime Video) The Patriots will play host to the New York Jets for a Thursday Night Football showdown in November. This will be the NFL Nike Rivalries game, where the Patriots are slated to debut their new rivalries uniform. The Jets have been a walking disaster in recent years, and it's hard to envision that suddenly changing for this matchup. Week 12: Nov. 23 at Cincinnati Bengals (1:00 p.m. ET CBS) Joe Burrow and the Cincinnati Bengals still probably have a bad taste in their mouth after being upset by the Jerod Mayo-led Patriots last season. Granted, the Patriots should be significantly better in 2025, but they might be punching above their weight against the Bengals. Barring another stunning drop-off for Cincinnati, it's hard to envision lightning striking twice for the Patriots. Week 13: Dec. 1 vs. New York Giants (8:15 p.m. ET ESPN) There is still no love lost from the New York Giants ending the Patriots' perfect season nearly 20 years ago at Super Bowl XLII. You can rest assured that Mike Vrabel, who played for the 2007 Patriots team, hasn't forgotten. The Giants lost more football games than the Patriots last season, and they'll be counting on rookie quarterback Jaxson Dart to change their fortunes. Week 14: BYE WEEK Week 15: Dec. 14 vs. Buffalo Bills (1:00 p.m. ET CBS) Grok is predicting a clean sweep for the Buffalo Bills in their head-to-head meetings with the Patriots this season. It's hard to bet against Josh Allen, but it also wouldn't be surprising to see the Patriots steal a win at home in this one. They will also likely be the more desperate team in terms of playoff seeding. Week 16: Dec. 21 at Baltimore Ravens (1:00 p.m. ET CBS) Going on the road and knocking off a perennial playoff contender like the Baltimore Ravens might be too much to ask for this Patriots team. The Ravens don't lose often, and it's even tougher beating them at M&T Bank Stadium. Beating a Lamar Jackson-led team on the road would mean the Patriots haven't just improved. They have arrived. Week 17: Dec. 28 at New York Jets (1:00 p.m. ET CBS) This AI simulation has the Patriots sweeping the New York Jets in the regular season series. There are far too many questions on offense for a Jets team still picking up the pieces from their failed Aaron Rodgers experiment. It isn't a great outlook when the team is looking for quarterback Justin Fields to save them. Week 18: Jan. 3/4 vs. Miami Dolphins (TBD) The Patriots getting a warm-weather opponent like the Dolphins at Foxborough in January bodes well for the team to finish the season with another victory. There are serious concerns with Miami's defense with the loss of Jalen Ramsey and Artie Burns. Drake Maye and the Patriots' offense should feast in this one. Patriots 2025 record prediction: 11-6 Follow Patriots Wire on Twitter and Facebook.