In case you missed it, Pittsburgh Steelers tight end Darnell Washington just had one of the angriest runs after a catch that you’ll ever see in the NFL. The big guy caught a short crosser over the middle during Sunday’s game against the Bengals, then proceeded to barrel his way through three defenders, stiff-arming two of them for a first down. It was undoubtedly one of the highlights of the season so far, and many fans still can’t stop watching the play.
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Surprisingly, though, according to Washington, the highlight almost looked completely different. He joined the St. Brown brothers on their podcast to detail the run, and he shared something that caught their attention.
Washington said he was planning on hurdling the second defender down the sideline before changing his mind at the last minute.
“I really thought about jumping,” Washington revealed on the St Brown Podcast. “But I was like, nah, he ain’t going low. So, I lowered my shoulder just to continue on down the sideline. Then, DJ Turner, he just tried to punch the ball out, and you know, I just finished the run.”
Saying that he finished the run was putting it lightly. 6-foot-7 Washington completely embarrassed Turner by driving him backward almost five yards out of bounds. The defensive back looked like a child compared to the tight end in that moment.
DARNELL WASHINGTON OH MY GLORIOUS STIFF ARM.
CINvsPIT on CBS/Paramount+https://t.co/HkKw7uXVnt pic.twitter.com/vpn6NVgaFU
— NFL (@NFL) November 16, 2025
After the revelation, Amon-Ra St. Brown wanted to know what goes through Washington’s mind when he sees defensive backs trying to tackle him.
“It’s one or two things. I’mma either drop the shoulder or try to go high,” Washington shared. After hearing this, Amon-Ra became even more curious because he saw the tight end hurdle two players earlier in the same game.
“There was another play where you hurdled like two dudes that same game. I’m like, what the f**k?” Amon-Ra said enviously.
Washington appreciated the praise, but he also added that the hurdle was a do-or-die attempt on a 4th and long. He was simply trying to reach the first down at that point, though he ultimately came up short.
Later on in the interview, the St. Brown brothers wanted to know how much Washington actually weighed. Online, it says he’s 264 pounds, but they didn’t buy it. After some reluctance, Washington revealed his true weight.
“I ain’t finna cap to y’all, I ain’t weighed myself in a minute,” Washington said while laughing. “I’m going to keep it a buck, I’m 311.”
It was a staggering revelation that made the brothers sit up in their chairs. They knew that Washington’s weight listed online was wrong, but they didn’t think it was that wrong.
With that in mind, the brothers asked Washington if he thinks that he’s the hardest player in the game to tackle. He responded:
“I feel like I’m in the conversation. There’s some stuff to work on and just my YAC. Once I improve in that, then yeah, we’ll talk.”
That was a humble response from one of the biggest receiving targets in the NFL right now. In his third season, Washington already has a career high in targets (25) and receiving yards (209), and he’ll soon reach a career high in receptions. In his first few seasons, he was used primarily as a blocker because of his size, but this year he’s showing that he can catch and run with the ball, too.
All in all, it was a fun interview with one of the biggest players in the game following the angriest run of the season. Maybe you didn’t know much about Washington before Sunday’s highlight, but now most fans do. It’ll be interesting to see if the Steelers continue to use him more or if he eventually returns to his blocking duties for most snaps.
