The Pittsburgh Steelers beat the Cleveland Browns handily on Sunday, winning 23-9 to put them at 4-1 on the year with a commanding lead in the AFC North race. TE Darnell Washington came away with his most productive game of the year on the stat sheet, catching three passes on five targets for 62 yards while operating in his natural blocking role as an extension of Pittsburgh’s offensive line.
THE FILM
Washington played 47 offensive snaps against the Browns on offense, one less than his season-high two weeks ago against the Minnesota Vikings (48). Washington got off to a hot start on the first play from scrimmage for Pittsburgh’s offense. He catches a wide-open pass after leaking out up the field on the snap, running a post corner route toward the sideline. He caught the pass and continued to rumble into Cleveland territory for 36 yards before having the ball knocked out of bounds.
Washington managed to haul in a couple more passes in this contest, the first being on an out route toward the sideline, where QB Aaron Rodgers hits his intended target in stride with DE Isaiah McGuire attempting to cover him, having CB Denzel Ward help bring Washington down out of bounds on the catch-and-run.
Washington’s final reception of the game comes on a quick checkdown from Rodgers on a curl route. He runs up the field five yards and turns back to the quarterback, who puts the ball right on Washington’s chest. Washington then turns upfield and becomes a runner with the ball in his hands, taking multiple defenders to bring him down after picking up another five yards after the catch.
Washington dropped a pass in the contest on a broken play that Rodgers threw to him late to avoid getting hit. Washington also missed out on this opportunity, where he got wide open on a similar route to the first play of the game, but Rodgers managed to overthrow the hulking tight end, which is difficult given his size and length.
Much has been made about Washington’s actual weight, as he is listed on the Steelers’ site at 264 pounds, but is far bigger than that, as fellow teammate Pat Freiermuth has confirmed. That size shows up as a pass catcher, but more importantly as a blocker, as Washington can be like having a third offensive tackle. For instance, watch this rep as Washington comes in motion and levels DE Cameron Thomas on a block as RB Jaylen Warren gets up into the second level of the defense, enforcing his will on the smaller defensive lineman.
We see similarly impressive blocks from Washington throughout the contest as he is asked to base block defensive ends, like in the first clip below against Alex Wright, stopping the defender in his tracks with his long arms and strength. In the second clip, watch as Washington comes in motion and buries the linebacker on a down block, clearing a path for RB Kaleb Johnson to get into the second level of the defense.
It’s not all perfect from Washington. He misses this block on Thomas because he is late to his assignment, having Thomas crash inside and forcing RB Kenneth Gainwell to bounce the run outside.
HC Mike Tomlin alluded to an increase in playing time for Darnell Washington after making a substantial impact in the run blocking department against the Vikings. He held true to his word as Washington was Pittsburgh’s most effective tight end on Sunday, outshining Jonnu Smith and Pat Freiermuth both as a receiver and blocker.
Darnell Washington is quickly coming into his own as a difference-maker for this offense. He is a powerful force that opposing defenses need to account for in the running game, and can be a viable target that is a load to bring down as a pass catcher. Washington will look to carry that effectiveness over to Thursday night against the Cincinnati Bengals, showing that his increased role is the standard moving forward.
