The Pittsburgh Steelers are nearing the end of the offseason, as their 2023 training camp comes to a close this week. They're now in the middle of their preseason games to finish getting ready for the 2023 regular season.
As the team works through their preseason schedule, Steeler Nation will be excited to see many of the new faces the team acquired this offseason wear the Black & Gold for the first time. They will also be excited to see all the returning stars that they were familiar with last season.
It will be interesting to see who all plays and how much, because even though Head Coach Mike Tomlin said previously that everyone who is healthy will play, we still should be a little skeptical about that. Seeing players like TJ Watt, Cam Heyward, and possibly Minkah Fitzpatrick out on the field should come as a small surprise despite Tomlin's comments.
One player everyone will have their eye on during every rep, partially for the excitement around him and partially because he sticks out due to his size, is third round rookie tight end, Darnell Washington.
Darnell Washington Was Thrown Into The Fire Early In Steelers Training Camp
Washington is a mammoth tight end and is a very good athlete, so seeing him perform against other NFL talent in live game action will be exciting. However, he was already battle tested often throughout practice going against some of the league's best.
Tomlin didn't hesitate to give Washington his 'welcome to the NFL' moment. Washington joined Randy Baumman of WDVE to explain how Tomlin threw him into the fire against a former Defensive Player of the Year on his very first rep.
"At some point in my rookie career, at some point, the coaches want to see what I can do. At some point, they may put me against TJ," said Washington about eventually facing Watt. "I didn't think it would be right out the gate, you know those were my first reps. When coaches called it out, he was like '80 you up, you see 90 up.' 'Hold up, 90!?' I was like, 'Ohh dang, right out the gate, no warm up no nothing.'"
It is definitely a bold move to have a third round tight end have his first full live reps come against arguably the best defensive player in the league, but that is what Washington was drafted to do, take on these elite defenders and stop them in their tracks.
For what it's worth, it was a successful decision to put Washington against Watt as he held his own. The mindset Washington went into it with, along with his size and skillset, helped him prove he belongs.
"I just went into it confident, I kind of take pride in blocking. Got some things to correct, but that's how it goes."
His initial success didn't mean it was going to be an easy road for Washington, as he let it be known it didn't take long for Watt to prove he still had things to learn.
"We ended up going again I think the next day, he got the best of me on that day. I mean it is what it is, it's football. You win some, you lose some, even the greats lose some, and that's just how this game works. You just have to move forward."
Getting any wins against Watt should be considered a success this early in Washington's career, and the more these two go at it, the more Washington will continue to improve.
In the Steelers' first preseason game, Washington worked both with the first and second units getting in some good reps against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers defense. Overall, the progress Washington is making is about on par with any realistic expectations Steeler Nation should've been putting on him, but that doesn't mean we won't see Washington continue to work to take his game to the next level.
Being put against Watt early on is an indication of how highly the coaches and team much think of Washington, and him being part of the team's opening drive of the preseason verified it.
Comment below and tell us your thoughts on Washington being thrown into the fire against Watt on his very first rep, and what you expect for Washington this season!
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