Darnell Washington, Georgia (6’7”, 270)
What Scouts Say:
BIG BOY. A big boy with crazy burst and speed, and can block anyone. Not necessarily a strong route runner, simply wins due to size mismatches. Over half his yards last year came off of play action, may be limited to someone who wins as an in-line TE on a run-heavy attack where he can block, release, and get the ball. Will be hard to bring down. Most likely will not command constant targets as part of an offense, and the weekly fantasy ceiling is low.
What We Saw:
Tony:
Darnell Washington is a Madden-created player. He’s a strong in-line blocker, but his physical tools allow him to block well in the open field as well, which means he’s in play to be on the field during your WR screens and toss sweeps. He’s a dominant receiving option off of play action, and I think he will most likely be successful on a run-heavy offense as an in-line block and release play fake scheme player. I’m not sure if he’s crisp enough to be a TE1 for an NFL team at the moment, but he certainly has the tools to develop into one. He wins with his frame and physicality, catches the ball with his hands, and is an instant red zone threat. I don’t know how relevant he can be for fantasy managers in year one, but he is an interesting taxi squad holds with a ton of upside.
Shane:
He’s big and can block, that’s about it. He is a size mismatch who is going to be used mostly as a blocker or sometimes an eligible receiver. I mainly used this to scout Brock Bowers for next year.
Player Comparison:
Marcedes Lewis/Donald Parham
