Aug. 8: Head coach Mike Tomlin says that Washington has not requested a trade or expressed dissatisfaction with his role on the team, as Brian Batko of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette writes. “Those unnamed sources, we don’t react to or respond to,” Tomlin said. “James has been great here, working, and having a good camp.”
Canada expressed similar sentiments, adding that Washington has a “good role” in the offense.
Aug. 6: Steelers wide receiver James Washington has asked for a trade (Twitter link via Adam Schefter of ESPN.com). It’s not immediately clear whether the Steelers will accommodate the request.
Washington, a 2018 second-round pick, saw a jump from 38 targets as a rookie to 80 looks in 2019. Last year, however, the ball was thrown in his direction just 56 times. And, so far in training camp, Washington hasn’t been getting the kind of reps he wants.
Washington’s best year as a pro came in ’19 when he caught 44 passes for 735 yards and three touchdowns. Last year, he posted 30 grabs for 392 yards and five scores. His yards per catch average also dropped, going from 16.7 to 13.1. He’s hoping for a fresh start elsewhere, allowing him to reestablish himself as a quality deep threat.
Despite the request, recently promoted offensive coordinator Matt Canada would probably prefer to keep him in Pittsburgh. However, if the front office trades the 25-year-old, he’ll be able to move forward with JuJu Smith-Schuster, Chase Claypool, and Diontae Johnson as his top options.
Love his country tough attitude. He’s honestly my favorite receiver they’ve got right now. I’d be disappointed to see him go. He’s not the same skill level as the other 3, but there’s a big drop off from Washington to ray ray or whoever steps in as the 4
Washington is one of the rare misses for Colbert’s ability to find star WR’s with mid round picks.
…or could be a Sanders situation
That’s what I’m thinking
I don’t think it’s a miss I think its a lack of opportunities.
He’s a deep threat #3 capable of 50-60 catchs, 800 yards, and a couple TDs.
But when you have Juju, Claypool, and Johnson plus TEs there’s just not a lot of touches or opportunities.
He could certainly thrive somewhere like SD, Jacksonville, Atlanta as a #3 deep threat.
Agreed. Even if he’s not necessarily a star, he’s a decent tertiary option with the ability to extend the field, which is respectable for a late second rounder
I said that he wasn’t a star, not that he couldn’t play in the league.
The guys you named plus AB, Sanders, Wallace, all late seconds or later. Burress with a mid first, IIRC. Pretty impressive record.
True, I guess our expectations for Colbert are a bit bloated due to his track record. I misread your comment a bit. I now understand you meant “miss” relative to Colbert’s history rather than “bust”
Washington has potential, but he’s had a hit or miss record in Pittsburgh. He may do better with better opportunities, but Washington had them early and disappointed, so it’s not all on the team.
I don’t think he’s a bust, though. He has what I think is a good future ahead of him. Pittsburgh however really cannot afford to lose him now, with the receiving corps already questionable as a whole going into this season. They need Washington-and need him to step up-this next year. If he is still unhappy, they can trade him and select a new receiver in the draft or pick up a veteran in the offseason. But short of nabbing reciprocal production at that position in a trade, I don’t see him leaving Pittsburgh this year.
Wallace wasn’t a “star” though he had two good seasons in Pitt, 2nd and 3rd. His 1st and 4th were #2, #3 type production.
Emmanuel sanders wasn’t even a star in Pitt lol. He was mediocre in Pitt and became a star in Denver with manning.
Sanders was better than mediocre, but you are correct. Not sure what you’re trying to prove though exactly. Are you saying that they’re not examples of good wideouts taken by Pittsburgh?
Detroit needs WR
Colbert has missed on more then one wr. Washington, Coates, Wheaton,Sweed,Reid and Gibson. All those guys were drafted from round 2-4 in the Colbert era that didn’t do much, if anything, in Pittsburgh.
Washington should be dealt and get a player that they are in need of positionally.
Wheaton was good, Washington has been okay but not great. I wouldn’t call either misses just not because they weren’t stars. The Steelers got about 1600 yards out of him in four years, which isn’t a bust for a third string receiver. Washington’s evaluation will really depend on this year.
I don’t blame him. Kid has potential, just needs more reps.
Problem is that there isn’t much behind him. If one of the other 3 go down suddenly you’re in trouble without him.
Can’t imagine a team would give more than a 5th for him, which makes trading for a draft pick not worth it. Wonder if a player swap could be in the cards. Steelers could stand to upgrade their secondary with upside youth and/or solid depth.
He isn’t going to get any deep balls with old rag arm throwing to him anyway.
You’re funny
What if we get a young OL person for him?
Complaint about the number of targets?
30 catches out of 56 passes thrown your way !!
It’s not the Head Coach, the OC, the WR coach…..
Look in the mirror, Mr Washington!!
No kidding. A good receiver when he catches the ball. 50% catch ratios aren’t going to anyone or keep anyone a starting job. How many drives did James Washington end with those unnecessary drops?
Washington’s catch rate last year was 53.6%. Mike Williams’ was 56.5%, D.J. Moore’s was 55.9% and Marquez Valdes-Scantling’s was 52.4%, and they started 37 games between them last year (source: Pro Football Reference).
Washington came in 25th in Average Targeted Air Yards (TAY) according to Next Gen Stats (I couldn’t find a list by Average Depth of Target anywhere), and of those 25 players, Washington came in 16th in catch rate, but only six of those players had a catch rate over 60%, and only one of those over 70%. In other words, the deeper the targets, the lower the catch rate.
Washington does need to work on his drops, as his drop rate has gone up each year, 5.3% to 6.3% to 7.1% (Nelson Agholor is not far back of him, but Valdes-Scantling hit 11.1% last year).
Agreed. I don’t think he’s a lost cause at all, but Washington has contributed to his lack pf playing time. I’d wager that a change of scenery could help, as he’s clearly not happy in Pittsburgh and that may affect his effectiveness, but they simply do not have enough already from their starting three wideouts (despite Claypool’s promising rookie season) to afford to lose one. They need Washington’s improvement as much as he does in order to either win a starting job or gain good trade value to make someone interested. Smith-Schuster is likely gone anyway after this year barring a great season, so Washington could earn a starting role if he lives up to his college potential this year, even if he’s not traded.
Oh Canada …
Shoot the 49ers would gladly have him as their #3 option!! I actually really liked Waahington, and thought he would break out last year, but for whatever reason just never seemed to happen
Will Washington get a job at Dairy Queen like Le’Veon Bell did to force the Steelers hand?
Trade him to Jacksonville or Houston. You’ll get good 2022 draft value back.
So this was really just ESPN practicing it’s fumbling drill before the season starts.
One way to look at this is to excel rather than fold? I want a person in any venue to fight for whats theirs rather than squabble over others taking it.