With the first quarter of the regular season in the books, chants are starting to come down to “Let the kids play.”
We’ve discussed at nauseum the desire to see CB Joey Porter Jr. and DL Keeanu Benton more on the field. Both of Pittsburgh’s second-round picks have impressed in a limited sample size and have earned the right for more playing time. OT Broderick Jones had to step in for injured LT Dan Moore Jr. last weekend against the Houston Texans and will start his first NFL regular-season game this Sunday against the Baltimore Ravens. That is probably not a moment too soon for Steelers fans who have gotten tired of Moore’s subpar play the first few weeks of the season.
TE Darnell Washington is also stepping into a bigger role this week with starting TE Pat Freiermuth expected to miss the game with a hamstring injury. Washington has seen a fair number of snaps thus far as Pittsburgh’s No. 2 tight end, playing 44% of the offensive snaps (103) in the first four games of the season. While he’s seen a good amount of playing time thus far, Washington knows that attempting to replace what Freiermuth brings to the table as a receiver may be a tall task for the 22-year-old rookie.
“Each tight in our room’s got a unique talent. Pat, he’s got a different route tree than me,” Washington said, according to Brian Batko of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. “They’re gonna try to make me do his route tree, but it’s not gonna look as clean as how Pat does it.”
Freiermuth is a fluid route runner at tight end, serving more as a pumped-up slot receiver than a traditional big-bodied in-line tight end who does well uncovering against linebackers and finding the soft spots in zone coverage to sit and give his quarterback an open target. Washington is a gargantuan target who can excel in the red zone like Freiermuth, but he lacks that fluidity and crispness as a route runner, something he made note of wanting to improve back in OTAs and mandatory minicamp.
Washington isn’t near as accomplished of a receiver as Freiermuth is, seeing as he just caught his first NFL pass last week against Houston. However, he is a better fit for what Pittsburgh wants to do in the running game, being a far superior blocker than Freiermuth. He has the size and strength to block base defensive ends as well as the athleticism to make blocks in space to spring runners into the second level.
Washington should see his snaps noticeably increase with Freiermuth likely sidelined this weekend, having the opportunity to get more exposure in the passing game as well as be a key cog in trying to get this running game going. The Ravens have proven to be a stout unit defensively, making it important for Pittsburgh to establish a presence at the line of scrimmage with its ground game. The Steelers will rely on both Washington and Broderick Jones to step up and provide what we saw from them last week against the Texans as well as what we saw from them at the University of Georgia.
Washington is in prime position to show that he can be a capable all-around tight end in this league as Freiermuth misses time. With Freiermuth entering a contract year next season and the current market rate for tight ends only increasing, Washington’s development and performance throughout the 2023 season could play a factor regarding what direction Pittsburgh may decide to go with Freiermuth’s contract status heading into 2024.
