If you’ve watched a Pittsburgh Steelers game this year, chances are you’ve heard the announcers talk about 300-pound tight end Darnell Washington. And chances are, at one point or another, the announcers mentioned that Washington, given his size, might move to offensive tackle later in his career.
But right now, the Georgia product is a weapon for the Steelers in heavy packages, both catching passes and run-blocking.
So it was interesting last Sunday when NBC’s lead NFL analyst Cris Collinsworth suggested it was Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers who prevented a more immediate move to the offensive line for Washington. Collinsworth said if it weren’t for Rodgers’ insistence on using Washington as a weapon at tight end, he would’ve ended up at tackle for the Steelers.
That was news to Rodgers, who was asked about the situation during a press availability on Wednesday.
Asked Aaron Rodgers about the Darnell Washington anecdote Cris Collinsworth told on SNF broadcast — that the QB stopped coaches from moving the TE to tackle.
Rodgers says definitively that’s not his recollection.
So, no, there was never a plan for Washington to play OT.
— Brooke Pryor (@bepryor) November 12, 2025
Apparently, there was never a plan to move Washington to tackle after all. According to Steelers beat reporter Brooke Pryor, Rodgers said “definitively” that he did not insist on Washington remaining at tight end, and there were no plans to move him to tackle this season. It appears Collinsworth was fed some bogus information.
Throughout Washington’s development in Pittsburgh, there’s been chatter about a possible switch to tackle. However, that discussion has always been couched with the caveat that this move would happen later in his career, perhaps when he is no longer mobile enough to be an effective tight end.
Rodgers surely has good reason to keep Washington put; he’s been an effective weapon for the veteran quarterback thus far. But the organization seemingly didn’t need any convincing on that front either, as Collinsworth posed.
About Drew Lerner
Drew Lerner is a staff writer for Awful Announcing and an aspiring cable subscriber. He previously covered sports media for Sports Media Watch. Future beat writer for the Oasis reunion tour.