The Pittsburgh Steelers have never had one of the best tight ends of all time, but the team has always been extremely functional at the position. The tight end is very important in Pittsburgh due to the organization's willingness to run the ball, meaning a tight end must be proficient in the passing game and as a blocker. The best tight end in franchise history came into the league in 2005 after the team selected Heath Miller in the first round, and he played through the 2015 season. Pat Freiermuth took over the role in 2021, but in between those two the Steelers had plenty of quality players at tight end, including Jesse James.
James spent four years in Pittsburgh, and he was probably the most prominent tight end for the Steelers in between Miller and Freiermuth. Other candidates would be Vance McDonald or Eric Ebron, but James was the most consistent over the four seasons he was in Pittsburgh.
The organization drafted James during the fifth round of the 2015 NFL Draft, and he and Miller were able to play together for one season before Miller announced his retirement. James spoke about being able to play with Miller during an interview with WTAJ.
"The knowledge that [Heath] gave me was huge and I built my career with that foundation.” James said. “I went in and tried to copy all the processes he went through, and it became extensive. All the stuff that I learned from him really was the foundation for the success I had in my career.”
It is safe to say that James had a great mentor in Miller, and the lessons he learned from the tight end were able to allow him to build out a successful, eight-year career in the NFL. After the 2018 season with the Steelers, James signed a four-year deal with the Detroit Lions in free agency.
He also played for the Chicago Bears and Cleveland Browns, and he spent time on the practice squads of the New Orleans Saints and Las Vegas Raiders during the 2023 season. He was not on a roster in 2024, but he has not officially announced his retirement either.
All things considered, James had a fairly successful NFL career that could still continue, but things were not always looking so good. He got to learn from Miller which was great for James, but it also meant he was behind Miller on the depth chart. He began his career as a healthy inactive for most weeks while he got the hang of the NFL, which he spoke about during his interview.
"I didn’t start off playing right away. I had a lot to prove.” James said. “You weren’t going to be given anything you did. So, I sat around the first couple weeks of the season as a healthy inactive and just trying to get a moment to prove myself.”
James could not have begun his career in a better place. He got to learn from Miller, and he grew up a Steelers fan. He was raised in and around Pittsburgh, and he got the opportunity to play in some pretty big games for the Steelers.
Steelers History Will Forever Hold A Piece Of Jesse James
James is largely known for his historic non-touchdown against the New England Patriots during the 2017 season. It was Week 15 and Pittsburgh was hosting New England, and the Patriots escaped with a 27-24 victory. Late in the game, James caught what looked like a game-winning touchdown. However, the call was overturned by the officiating crew, which was a wildly controversial call.
Ben Roethlisberger threw an interception two plays later, and the Steelers would end up losing the contest. This directly resulted in New England receiving the one-seed in the postseason over the Steelers, and the Steelers would end up losing in the Divisional Round after being forced to play a hot Jacksonville Jaguars team.
Meanwhile, the Patriots got to play the Tennessee Titans, who they beat by 21 points. New England would go on to lose the Super Bowl that year, but things could have been different had the officiating crew made the right call on James' catch.
