NFL Draft Profile: Parker Washington, Wide Receiver, Penn State Nittany Lions
#3
Pos: WR
Ht: 5095
Wt: 204
Hand: 1018
Arm: 2900
Wing: 7200
DOB: 3/21/2002
Hometown: Sugarland, TX
High School: William B. Travis
Eligibility: 2023
Parker Washington
Penn State Nittany Lions
One-Liners
When looking at Washington, he is going to be a prospect coaches are much higher on than scouts, as he is a really smart player with great hands but he lacks size and separation ability.
Evaluation:
At Penn State, Washington plays exclusively in the slot, where he is one of the most productive players in the nation. Washington does an excellent job of finding openings in zone coverage and he has fantastic spatial awareness. He’ll sit there and Penn State’s quarterback will check it down to him if the other receivers aren’t open downfield. In addition to his elite spatial awareness, Washington has great hands. He is going to haul in anything that comes close to his catch radius, which is crucial because his catch radius is on the smaller side. Washington is able to pluck the ball out of the air, go up and get the ball and can make catches on passes thrown behind him with ease. Against man coverage, Washington understands how to attack leverages to create enough separation to catch the football. Washington is a willing blocker and, for an undersized player, was able to make a contribution in that regard, especially blocking in space on screen passes. In terms of his long speed, Washington isn’t a threat vertically. He has just average long speed and isn’t quick off the line. Washington also isn’t quick in and out of his breaks, which puts little stress on cornerbacks in man coverage. There is some wiggle to Washington’s game but the quickness to be a high-level separator isn’t. He wins at the collegiate level by finding openings from the slot but that won’t translate the same way at the next level. When opponents put cornerbacks on him in press-man coverage, Washington struggled to create separation, which is concerning for a slot-only player. It takes Washington too long to break down, reducing his effectiveness as a route runner. He runs solid routes and should have no problem with any route tree at the next level but his size, speed and quickness will prevent him from reaching his full potential as a route runner. Overall, Washington is a great college player but he lacks the upside to be a difference-maker at the next level. The qualities Washington excels at are great but they are secondary when teams are drafting a wideout.
Grade:
6th Round
Background:
Parker Washington has been at Penn State since 2020 and has an excellent player for the team and the offense. In 2020, he was Freshman All-American second team and started nine games, and that increased to playing in thirteen games in 2021. During his career so far, he has over a thousand yards and will look to keep up with that trend in 2022 and going forward. Parker Washington has a family line of athletes, including Josh Dobbs, a quarterback for the Jaguars and Kansas City Royals player Tyler Tolbert who is Washington’s cousin. In the future, Washington wants to pursue a future career in medicine, specifically sports medicine.
