Player: TE Darnell Washington
Stock Value: Up
Reasoning: With the Steelers trading George Pickens, TE Darnell Washington could potentially see a bigger role in the offense. Pat Freiermuth will remain the top target for tight ends, but we could see more 12 personnel in passing situations. The Steelers began expanding his menu last year, and perhaps they plan to expand it further in 2025.
The Steelers didn’t draft Darnell Washington to catch 100 balls per season, but they won’t balk at more production out of him. And after trading WR George Pickens, there may be a chance for him to do just that. Even without Pickens, the Steelers still have roughly what they had at wide receiver last year, though. It’s just that now, instead of Pickens, they have DK Metcalf. Then again, they don’t even have Van Jefferson now, unless they consider Robert Woods a 1:1 replacement.
After last year, though, I can’t see them playing a Van Jefferson type as much. If the Steelers have Pat Freiermuth and Darnell Washington at tight end, why are they going to play Woods instead? That does depend, however, at least in part on what they see from their duo.
If Washington looks like he’s ready for a bigger role in the passing game, then he could see one. He isn’t a nuanced route runner, nor the most agile. But he has size that he knows how to use, and he had solid hands. Last season, he even showed that his surprising elusiveness after the catch he showed in college wasn’t a fluke. Whether via hurdle or stiff-arm, he can find his way around—or through—a defender.
of course, there are other reasons to be optimistic for Darnell Washington. We are in the second season of Arthur Smith’s offense, and he likes to use tight ends. In Atlanta, it took him until his second season to more fully implement his offensive vision. We should see a similar adjustment here, and that should mean more of Washington. But that will also depend on who is at quarterback, as well as his preferences.
With the new league year underway and the Steelers turning their roster over, it’s once again time to “take stock”. It took a while, but we finally saw some of thatchange the team talked about after the season ended. Certainly, the move to trade for WR DK Metcalf qualifies as a change, not to mention the accompanying contract.
There is still a long way to go before we know what this Steelers team is going to look like. The dust is settled on both free agency andthe 2025 NFL Draft. What other moves might the team make, perhaps unexpected acquisitions or departures? If they traded for one player, they could certainly trade for another, or trade one away. This is a Steelers team starving for postseason success, but how desperate are they for a playoff win in 2025?
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