Coming off a quiet rookie season that saw him lightly used in the passing game, the expectation was for second-year Pittsburgh Steelers tight end Darnell Washington to take a significant step forward in 2024 with offensive coordinator Arthur Smith and his TE-friendly scheme in place.
Though Washington didn’t put up eye-popping numbers, the Georgia product certainly took a sizable step forward in Year 2. For his efforts in the passing game and the progress he made as a blocker, Washington was named the Steelers’ most-improved player by Pro Football Focus.
“Washington featured more frequently in the passing game in 2024, catching 19 passes for 200 yards and a touchdown,” Thomas Valentine writes for PFF. “He still has a way to go before he’s the finished product, but Washington improved his grade from 49.8 in 2023 to 73.4 in 2024 and still showed his value as one of the best blocking tight ends in the game.”
Coming into the season, the expectation was that Washington would have an increased role, and he certainly had that under Smith.
The big, hulking tight end played 581 snaps offensively in 2024, though it was just an increase of 72 snaps from his rookie season. However, Washington had much more work in the passing game, seeing 25 targets on the season, an increase from the 10 he had as a rookie.
On the year, Darnell Washington hauled in 19 of those targets for 200 yards and touchdown. That touchdown came in Week 2 of the season in Denver, winning a one-on-one back-shoulder fade route for the score before then saluting his United States Marine Corps brother in a tribute.
Along with his work in the passing game, Washington got better as a blocker, too, particularly in the run game. Washington’s grade in run blocking improved to 68.8, up from 51.3 as a rookie, though his pass-blocking grade decreased in his second year from 72.3 to a 67.9.
Washington was charged with five penalties on the season, one of which was a holding penalty on Christmas Day that wiped out a Jaylen Warren rushing touchdown, leading to a Russell Wilson interception on the very next play.
In addition to the penalties, Washington allowed five pressures and was charged with giving up two sacks.
He grew in his role, showed he could be a viable pass-catching threat, too. But more improvement is needed as a receiver and as a blocker in Year 3.
