George Pickens Says Steelers’ Washington Can Be ‘Greatest TE of All Time’

The two were teammates at Georgia for two seasons, and are now reunited in Pittsburgh.

After a year apart, wide receiver George Pickens and tight end Darnell Washington are reunited with the Steelers as Pittsburgh selected each player in consecutive NFL drafts. Last season, Pickens had a solid rookie season with 801 receiving yards and four touchdowns, but that is nothing compared to what he thinks Washington can do.

On Friday, Pickens told the media that the “maximum” version of Washington is the “greatest football tight end of all time,” according to Nick Farabaugh. That means Pickens believes Washington could be better than Rob Gronkowski, Travis Kelce, Shannon Sharpe and Tony Gonzalez.

Washington is one of the more physically-imposing players in the league already, officially coming in at 6-foot-7 and 264 pounds, and he entered the draft as one of the top tight ends available. However, Washington fell to the third round when teams were concerned with his medical.

Despite Washington’s size, he only recorded 774 receiving yards and three touchdowns in 27 games at Georgia. He and Pickens overlapped for two years with Georgia, as both players were on the Bulldogs’ 2022 National Championship team.