Darnell Washington Fantasy Stats

Pittsburgh Steelers tight end Darnell Washington is participating in OTAs, per Mark Kaboly of The Pat McAfee Show. The 24-year-old ended the 2025 season on injured reserve after suffering a broken arm in Week 17, but it appears that he's fully healthy and ready to go heading into 2026. Across 16 games before getting injured last season, Washington hauled in 31 receptions for 364 yards and one touchdown on 43 targets. While Washington's numbers were all career-bests, he has not been able to establish himself as a reliable pass-catcher since being selected by Pittsburgh in the third round of the 2023 NFL Draft. With fellow Steelers tight end Pat Freiermuth still in the picture entering 2026, Washington appears unlikely to see a major role change in the upcoming season. Washington currently ranks as RotoBaller's TE40 for redraft leagues.

Pittsburgh Steelers tight end Darnell Washington is trending in the wrong direction in dynasty fantasy football leagues, and managers could justify dropping him as the post-rookie draft roster crunch approaches. Washington had 31 catches, 364 yards, and one touchdown last year, and we're not convinced he'll be able to surpass those numbers in 2026. Now heading into his fourth year, the odds aren't in Washington's favor. Not only has he failed to live up to expectations through three NFL seasons, but he also has no connection to the new Steelers coaching staff, led by Mike McCarthy. Furthermore, the Steelers brought in competition in the form of fifth-round rookie Riley Nowakowski. Washington should hold onto the No. 2 tight end role (behind Pat Freiermuth and ahead of Nowakowski) initially, but he could end up falling to third as the year goes on. Washington is also heading into a contract year, which could be more incentive for the Steelers to reduce his reps and lean more on Freiermuth and Nowakowski. While free agency could be a much-needed fresh start for Washington next year, he doesn't have the track record needed to sign somewhere as a starting tight end. Therefore, both in the short term and long term, Washington's dynasty outlook is bleak. Managers can absolutely justify dropping him, as he has fallen to TE52 in RotoBaller's latest dynasty fantasy football rankings.

Pittsburgh Steelers tight end Darnell Washington finally seemed like he was getting closer to fantasy relevance in dynasty leagues last season. However, the chances of him getting on the fantasy radar are now declining based on the Steelers' offseason moves. For starters, the team parted ways with head coach Mike Tomlin and brought in Mike McCarthy, who has no connections to the existing roster and presumably won't have the same patience to wait for a Washington breakout. Additionally, McCarthy started to put his own stamp on the tight end room, selecting Riley Nowakowski in the fifth round of the 2026 NFL Draft. That's not elite draft capital by any means, but it's presumably enough to give Nowakowski the chance to earn the No. 2 role by the end of the season. That could be problematic for Washington, who is heading into a contract year and is already behind Pat Freiermuth on the depth chart. As of now, it seems unlikely that Washington will be able to replicate his 2025 finish, which included 31 catches, 364 yards, and one touchdown. Additionally, we wouldn't be shocked if he's on a different team in 2027. He finished last year as the TE39 in PPR leagues, and he has already fallen to TE53 in RotoBaller's latest dynasty fantasy football rankings.

Pittsburgh Steelers tight end Darnell Washington should take over exclusive responsibility of the No. 2 spot on the depth chart behind Pat Freiermuth, but his lack of ties to the new coaching staff could complicate the situation. Washington was drafted by former head coach Mike Tomlin, and he had the best season of his young career in 2025 under offensive coordinator Arthur Smith. Both Tomlin and Smith are gone, being replaced by Mike McCarthy and Brian Angelichio. That's not to say that McCarthy and Angelichio won't utilize Washington; the Steelers' lack of tight end moves this offseason suggests they're satisfied with the position. However, the new staff has no attachment to Washington, and they could opt to use him less than Smith did in 2025, when he caught 31 passes for 364 yards and one touchdown. That's just one possibility amidst a large range of possible outcomes, so fantasy managers shouldn't necessarily panic. He's a speculative hold in most dynasty leagues at the moment.

Pittsburgh Steelers tight end Darnell Washington has officially jumped to No. 2 on the depth chart after the team released Jonnu Smith. Washington has never finished higher than TE39 in his three NFL seasons, but that could change next year as he takes on a larger role. He's technically listed behind Pat Freiermuth, but given how often the Steelers deployed two-tight end sets in 2025, we wouldn't be surprised to see Washington consistently get on the field for more than two-thirds of the offensive snaps. A physical specimen at 6-foot-7 and 265 pounds, Washington has shown a tendency to get open and make plays with the ball in his hands. He averaged 2.3 catches and 5.3 fantasy points per game from Weeks 11 through 17 last year, starting to trend up in dynasty leagues. The next big step for Washington is taking on a larger role around the goal line. For someone as tall and large as Washington, we'd expect him to have more than two touchdowns through three seasons. If he can take on a bigger role and get more looks around the end zone in new offensive coordinator Brian Angelichio's system, then Washington could become one of the more intriguing handcuffs in his role alongside Freiermuth. Tight end-needy managers in deep dynasty leagues should consider offering a late-round draft pick for Washington, because he has the potential to offer streaming appeal at times next year.

Pittsburgh Steelers tight end Darnell Washington (forearm) ended the 2025 season with surgery on his broken forearm, but he is looking to bounce back in the final year of his contract in 2026. Despite some highlight reel stiff arms and one TE8 finish in Week 11, Washington mainly played behind fellow tight ends Pat Freiermuth and Jonnu Smith. The Steelers are expected to move on from Smith during free agency, which is likely to benefit Washington. Despite Washington's size, he was on the field for more than just run blocking, boasting a 40% route run participation rate and hauled in 31 of his 43 targets for 364 yards and a touchdown in 2025. However, the 24-year-old out of Georgia primarily holds value only in deep dynasty leagues with tight end premium scoring due to his position behind Freiermuth on the depth chart.

Pittsburgh Steelers tight end Darnell Washington (forearm) had surgery on his broken forearm on Tuesday morning and will not play in the Week 18 regular-season finale against the division-rival Baltimore Ravens on Sunday, according to Mike DeFabo of The Athletic. Head coach Mike Tomlin said he has "some level of optimism for everyone else." The expectation was that Washington would not play after he broke his arm in the Week 17 loss to the Cleveland Browns on Sunday. Not only will the 24-year-old not be available for the winner-take-all game this Sunday night against the Ravens, but Washington is unlikely to be able to return for the playoffs if the Steelers take care of business this weekend. It means that Pat Freiermuth will become a slightly more attractive TE streamer in fantasy, as will Jonnu Smith. Washington's third season in the NFL will finish with 31 catches for 364 yards and a touchdown in 16 games.

Pittsburgh Steelers tight end Darnell Washington (arm) suffered a broken arm in Sunday's Week 17 loss against the Cleveland Browns, head coach Mike Tomlin announced. Tomlin wouldn't rule out Washington for Week 18 against the Baltimore Ravens, but this diagnosis will presumably shut him down for at least a few weeks, if not the entire playoffs (should Pittsburgh qualify). The 24-year-old had been stepping into a larger role lately, and he caught two passes for 15 yards prior to his departure on Sunday afternoon. Washington is a big, physical, and talented tight end, so his absence will be felt against the Ravens next week. With that said, the Steelers are lucky to have such a deep tight end room, so they will work to fill Washington's void with Jonnu Smith, Pat Freiermuth, and Connor Heyward.

Pittsburgh Steelers tight end Darnell Washington (forearm) has been downgraded to out for the remainder of his team's Week 17 matchup against the Cleveland Browns. The 24-year-old recorded two receptions for 15 yards on two targets before exiting the game. Washington entered the week with 29 catches for 349 yards and a touchdown on 41 targets across 15 games this season. With Washington sidelined, Steelers tight ends Jonnu Smith and Pat Freiermuth could both see more playing time and work in the passing game. Pittsburgh tight end Connor Heyward could see the field more as well, although he has been used more as a blocker and on special teams so far in 2025.

Pittsburgh Steelers tight end Darnell Washington has logged three receptions in each of his past two games and could be in line for additional opportunities against the division-rival Cleveland Browns in Week 17. Cleveland, while stingy against opposing wideouts, has been middle-of-the-road against tight ends this season. Back in Week 6, when the Steelers last faced the Browns, Washington took the field for 80% of offensive snaps and racked up 62 receiving yards. Pittsburgh will be without suspended receiver DK Metcalf on Sunday and, depending on the outcome of the Baltimore Ravens' game on Saturday, could choose to rest additional starters. Furthermore, Calvin Austin III (hamstring) has already been ruled out. Assuming Washington is active, he could be an important piece of the Steelers' passing attack. This makes him an intriguing streaming option in deeper fantasy formats, but Washington can remain on waiver wires in most redraft leagues.