Steelers rookie Darnell Washington elicits Plaxico Burress comparison despite mistakes during minicamp

The Pittsburgh Steelers traded down in the third round of the 2023 NFL Draft. Omar Khan traded the 80th pick overall for numbers 93 and 132 after trading away pick 120 in the first round to move up to get Broderick Jones. The Steelers turned pick 93 into a player they were rumored to be very interested in at pick 32 in Darnell Washington. Washington fell in the draft due to late health concerns, but the Steelers just could not pass him up at the end of the third round when he was still available.

Jeff Hathhorn observes the Steelers for 93.7 The Fan, and he appeared on The PM Team/w Poni & Mueller on Monday to share his thoughts on the Steelers rookie minicamp. He joined hosts Andrew Fillipponi and Chris Mueller. Fillipponi asked Hatthorn if rumors of Washington struggling a little bit were true.

“Yeah, but remember he wasn’t going to go 100 percent anyhow,” Hathhorn replied. “They were going halfway to three-quarters [of the] way through drills. There were a couple of mistakes he made on drills, where he turned the wrong way, I don’t know if it is that uncommon for rookies, but so many eyes are on him.”

Washington is hard to miss on a football field. He is 6-foot-7 and weighs more than 260 pounds. He has one of the most intriguing bodies and skill sets who have come out of college at the tight end position for quite a while. The Georgia Bulldogs tight end proved he was an intimidating blocker on a back-to-back national championship teams, but that is not all he is as Hatthorn shared with the radio hosts.

“I will say this,” Hatthorn interjected. “When he would run just some basic pass patterns, he looked smooth going down the field.  His size, he is wearing Plax’s [Burress)] number and there were times you were like dang, that kind of looks like Plax. He is not an incredibly bulky tight end, even though he is physical, he is like a forward that is standing in the guards’ group in basketball.”

The comparison to Plaxico Burress as a route runner and pass catcher is probably not what Steelers fans were expecting from Washington. The Bulldogs have had the best tight end in the country in Brock Bowers for the last two seasons, so despite his imposing size, it was easy for Washington to be overshadowed. He is getting a fresh start to prove what kind of weapon he can be in the passing game.

The Steelers are expected to spend a lot more time in 12 personnel during the upcoming season. The blocking duo of Washington and Zach Gentry on the ends of the line might be the best unit in the NFL. If Washington can prove that he is just as dangerous as Pat Freiermuth when he and Gentry are on the field, defenses will not be able to key in on the run game and Kenny Pickett could find some easy completions to his huge rookie tight end.

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Freiermuth would have the flexibility to occasionally line up as the slot wide receiver in two tight end sets and that could create huge mismatches down the seam and allow him to take his place as a Travis Kelce, George Kittle-type of weapon for Pickett and the Steelers. The rotation of Washington, Gentry and the occasional use of Connor Heyward will give the Steelers an unpredictable array of weapons at tight end.

The Steelers receiving group will be one of the biggest in the NFL with only Diontae Johnson and Calvin Austin III as projected weapons under 6-foot-3. Johnson was rated as the best receiver in the NFL at getting open in 2022 by ESPN Analytics, and Austin was one of the fastest players in the 2022 NFL Draft. Now all Matt Canada has to do is figure out a way to utilize all the weapons effectively.