Steelers Reunite OC Arthur Smith With Veteran TE: Report

Getty ESPN's Jeremy Fowler reported that the Pittsburgh Steelers signed tight end MyCole Pruitt, who Steelers offensive coordinator Arthur Smith has coached since 2018.

The Pittsburgh Steelers have drafted a tight end each of the past three years. All three of them are still on the roster. But ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler reported the Steelers added another tight end very familiar with new offensive coordinator Arthur Smith — veteran MyCole Pruitt.

“Tight end MyCole Pruitt has agreed to terms with the Steelers, per source,” Fowler wrote. “Reunited with Arthur Smith from their Tennessee and Atlanta days.”

Smith was first Pruitt’s tight ends coach with the Tennessee Titans in 2018. He was then Pruitt’s offensive coordinator in Tennessee from 2019-20.

Pruitt also played for Smith from 2022-23 with the Atlanta Falcons.

In 2023, Pruitt had 9 catches for 110 yards. He also had 1 touchdown while playing 402 offensive snaps.

Steelers Sign TE MyCole Pruitt: Report

Pittsburgh hasn’t addressed tight end in free agency in quite some time. Instead, the Steelers have turned to the draft in recent years for tight end depth. They chose Pat Freiermuth in 2021, Connor Heyward during the 2022 draft and Darnell Washington last year.

Pruitt will arrive in Pittsburgh as the most experienced player in the tight end room.

Pruitt began his career as a fifth-round pick in the 2015 NFL draft for the Minnesota Vikings. He spent the first season and a half of his career in Minnesota before the Vikings waived him in November 2016.

After a stint on the team’s practice squad, the Vikings then released Pruitt. He finished the 2016 season with the Chicago Bears. In 2017, he played for the Houston Texans.

Through his first three seasons, Pruitt had 12 catches for 102 yards.

Pruitt nearly matched those totals in his first season under Smith’s tutelage. In 2018, he had 9 catches for 102 yards and 1 touchdown.

Even in Smith’s offense, Pruitt has never eclipsed 150 receiving yards in a single season. But he’s proven to solid blocker and an occasional red zone target. Of Pruitt’s 39 catches over the past three seasons, 8 of them were touchdowns.

Pruitt is particularly strong in pass protection as a blocker. He has earned a pass blocking grade at Pro Football Focus of at least 62 (out of 100) each of the past three years.

Pruitt has also contributed on special teams. He has averaged 122 special teams snaps per season since 2018.

Pittsburgh’s TE Depth Heading Into the 2024 NFL Draft

With Pruitt’s arrival, the Steelers now have five tight ends on the 90-man roster. In addition to Freiermuth, Heyward and Washington, the Steelers also have 2023 undrafted free agent Rodney Williams under contract.

Williams didn’t have a target while playing 55 offensive snaps last season. He made 6 combined tackles on 189 special teams snaps.

Freiermuth led the Steelers in all receiving categories during the 2023 season. But he only had 32 catches for 308 yards and 2 touchdowns. Freiermuth missed five contests because of multiple injuries, including a significant hamstring issue.

Heyward and Washington weren’t very involved in Pittsburgh’s offense either despite Freiermuth missing time. Heyward had 167 receiving yards while Washington posted 61.

How much the Steelers involve their tight ends, however, should change dramatically under Smith.

With Smith calling plays last season for the Falcons, two of Atlanta’s top three pass catchers were tight ends. In Smith’s first season in Atlanta, tight end Kyle Pitts led the Falcons with 68 catches and 1,026 receiving yards.

Pruitt isn’t guaranteed to make Pittsburgh’s roster, but he should be able to help the other Steelers tight ends learn Smith’s offense.