Pittsburgh Steelers Trade for Jonnu Smith - What it Means for Darnell Washington

What the Pittsburgh Steelers trade for Jonnu Smith means for current tight end Darnell Washington.

Sep 29, 2024; Indianapolis, Indiana, USA; Pittsburgh Steelers tight end Darnell Washington (80) hurdles Indianapolis Colts safety Nick Cross (20) during the second quarter at Lucas Oil Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Marc Lebryk-Imagn Images | Marc Lebryk-Imagn Images

What the Pittsburgh Steelers trade for Jonnu Smith means for current tight end Darnell Washington.

The Pittsburgh Steelers and Miami Dolphins completed a blockbuster trade earlier this week, as the Dolphins sent All-Pro corner Jalen Ramsey and tight end Jonnu Smith to the Steelers in exchange for Minkah Fitzpatrick and a late-round draft pick.

As the dust on the monstrous trade begins to settle, many questions for the Steelers' roster have arisen. One of those being what does the future look like for current Pittsburgh tight end Darnell Washington?

Washington is entering his third season with the Steelers and has, up to this point, been a major contributor to Pittsburgh's offense. Despite possessing monstrous size and strong pass-catching abilities, Washington has been utilized mostly as a blocker in the run game thus far. The majority of targets have gone to the Steelers' other tight end, Pat Freiermuth. 

With Smith and Freiermuth now expected to be the primary targets in the tight end room, Washington's ability to grow as a pass catcher could diminish, and his production could suffer as a result. Despite this, there have been no indications that the Steelers currently plan to trade the former third-round draft pick, and the tight end will likely still be heavily featured in Pittsburgh's running game.

Washington and the Steelers will begin their 2025 regular season on Sunday, September 7th, as they travel to New York to face the Jets. Kickoff for this matchup is set for 1 p.m. and will air on CBS. 

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