When the Pittsburgh Steelers drafted TE Darnell Washington in the third-round of the 2023 NFL Draft, they knew they were getting themselves quite the blocker. Having earned the nickname “The Sixth Offensive Lineman” during his time at Georgia, Washington came to the league with the reputation as an impressive run blocker with the tape to back it up.
Through three preseason games, we have seen that skill set translate to the pros as Washington has imposed his will on opposing defenders thanks to his size, strength, and aggressiveness in the running game. Washington particularly had a great showing as a run blocker against the Atlanta Falcons, finishing the preseason with a great performance we will go into a little bit deeper in a film room.
The Film
Darnell Washington displayed impressive strength as well as technique to help create a few big holes in the running game for Pittsburgh last Thursday against the Falcons. Watch this double team by Washington and TE Zach Gentry to pick up blitzing LB on the run, peeling off the defensive end as Gentry maintains his block on the edge defender to spring RB Anthony McFarland Jr. into the second level of the defense after making one defender miss with a nice cut.
On the touchdown run by RB Jaylen Warren, we see Washington pick up the edge rusher on the far right side of the screen, locking onto his chest with both arms as he proceeds to run his feet on contact. Washington runs the defender clear out of the play as Warren fights through initial contact at the goal line to plunge in for the score.
Washington’s size and strength make him a handful for even larger edge rushers attempting to set the edge against the run. Take a look at this block that Washington makes on the defensive end, turning the defender’s shoulders away from the play as he walls him down, allowing McFarland to run right off his backside into the secondary, using his speed to rip off an explosive play on the ground.
Washington’s highlight block of the game comes on this rep where TE No. 83 Connor Heyward gets the carry. Watch as Washington gets a good fit on #52 Kemoto Turay and extends his left arm to get Turay on his heels. Washington sees that Turay is off-balance and pancakes him into the turf as he tries to fight pressure and get to the outside in attempt to make the tackle. Washington plants the defender into the turf right next to Heyward who is brought down by another defender after a short gain.
It wasn’t all good for Washington as a blocker against the Falcons. He did have moments where his technique escaped him like on this rep, dropping his head and failing to land his punch inside the defender’s torso, falling off the block almost immediately. Luckily, the defender slips and doesn’t get the tackle.
Facing DL No. 99 Joe Gaziano on a toss play to the left, Washington works to get outside of the defender seal the edge. However, the rest of the defense makes McFarland bounce back to the inside as Washington lets go of his bloc, getting pushed to the side by Gaziano who makes the tackle. This is a difficult adjustment to make on the fly for Washington, but playing with a better base and lower pad level would help him manage to stay on the defender.
On this tackle for loss in the backfield, we see a case where Washington is unable to seal off his defender coming on backside pursuit of the football. The defender gets a good get off on the snap, running down the line of scrimmage as Washington attempts to run him down the line with his right arm. Heyward hesitates for just a second as Washington’s man comes flying in to make the tackle. Should he have sealed off the defender right at the beginning of the snap with better body positioning and footwork, Washington’s defender likely wouldn’t have gotten in on the play.
Conclusion
There was a lot of good things to take away from Darnell Washington’s performance against the Atlanta Falcons. We saw him operate well on double team/combo blocks, kick out blocks, and impose his will on defenders when trying to win the edge. He does need to be more cognizant of his pad level and not dropping his head at times which will lead to whiffs, but this should come with time and more reps. Body positioning and punch accuracy are two other key factors that Washington can work on to become a more consistent blocker on a down-to-down basis.
Pittsburgh’s running game looked good throughout the game with RBs Najee Harris, Jaylen Warren, Anthony McFarland Jr., and even Connor Heyward to a degree showing some good looks with their touches. That’s a credit to Washington as well as the rest of the tight ends and offensive line, paving the way upfront to spring runners to the corner and into the second level of the defense.
With the regular season upon us, we will soon get to see Washington in action against a 49ers team that boasts potentially the best run blocking TE in the game in George Kittle. Washington may not be at that level right this minute, but he has the capability of reaching Kittle’s level as a blocker with more reps under his belt.
