There's been a lot of hype around the Pittsburgh Steelers rookie tight end, Darnell Washington throughout the 2023 offseason. One of the most extraordinary tight ends in league history, Rob Gronkowski, weighed in on his lofty expectations for Washington and said looks like a "freak" on the field. Standing at 6'7", the University of Georgia product came with a reputation as a stout blocker, but teammate, Minkah Fitzpatrick thinks that opposing safeties will have a tough challenge dealing with him in the passing game.
Washington's bread and butter at Georgia was his physical play to open up holes in the running game, but he gradually developed a role as a pass catcher. His reception totals rose steadily from seven to 15 to 28 in his three years at the school from 2020 through to 2022. In his final year in 2022, he amassed 454 yards with a pair of touchdowns and a two-point conversion. Fitzpatrick said via Brian Batko of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette that safeties across the league will have a tough time in coverage against the behemoth of a man.
"No matter what you do, no matter how good of coverage you’re in, if the quarterback places a good ball, he’s gonna catch it," he said. "He’s a physical guy, a big-bodied guy, but he’s also an athlete. He knows how to move. He has great body control. I don't know if he played basketball or not, but he reminds me of a basketball player with the body control he has."
Fitzpatrick added that Washington should help the team out in many ways due to his ability to shove linebackers and ends like it is nothing in the run game combined with his ability to be unguardable in the passing game by the smaller defenders. Steelers Head Coach, Mike Tomlin alluded to Washington's ability to be a bully in the red zone when a touchdown he scored in training camp was initially ruled to not be a score. Tomlin retorted to the question by a reporter telling them "You're not going to stop that big guy from falling into the end zone."
It will be interesting to see how often Washington gets used in the passing game with tight end, Pat Freirmuth soaking up the majority of the targets and hybrid fullback/tight end, Connor Heyward expected to have a larger role in the offense. The most likely situations that Washington will be on the field will be in the running game as an extra blocker and in the red zone where his monster frame should prove to be a matchup disaster for opposing defenses.
Steelers' Washington Trying To Focus On The Basics As He Prepares For Rookie Season
When you are as big and strong as Washington is it can be easy to just get away with perhaps not being as technically sound in college all the time. Washington said that was something he experienced in college, but as he starts to dip his toe into professional football, he's realized he probably won't be able to get away with it as much.
Washington said, also via Batko, that the fundamentals, like his footwork and hand placement, are major focuses for him as he transitions from college to the pros. The Steelers firmly believe that in order to be the best you can be, you need to compete with the best. In his very first blocking reps at training camp at Saint Vincent College in Latrobe, Pennsylvania, he was paired with 2021 AP Defensive Player of the Year, TJ Watt. He said that, over the course of camp, he won some reps against Watt and lost some, but the fact that the team wanted to get their third-round rookie against one of the league's biggest stars on defense speaks volumes.
It may take some time like it did for him in college, but Washington will be heavily involved in Pittsburgh's plans in 2023. The extent to which he is used in the passing game is yet to be determined but the team may have gotten more than just a tight end who is a sixth offensive lineman.
What have you thought of Washington so far? What kind of expectations do you have for him in 2023?
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