Pittsburgh Steelers: 5 Training camp standouts for 2018
By Randy Gurzi
2. James Washington, Wide Receiver
While the Mason Rudolph pick made waves, he wasn’t the first player from Oklahoma State that the Steelers chose. That honor went to James Washington, who they took with their second-round pick. In doing so, they landed one of the most well-rounded wide receivers, but he had his share of questions.
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One knock on Washington was that he was part of an offense that put up yards based on the system, rather than just the player’s talent. So far, he’s doing his work to prove that wrong by running beautiful routes and catching everything close to him.
Washington doesn’t have ideal height at 5-11, but that’s never been a problem for the Steelers. They have arguably the best wideout in the game in Antonio Brown, who is also under 6-0. Like Brown, Washington doesn’t let that affect his play as he was a highlight waiting to happen during his time in the NCAA.
As of now, he looks to be a lock for the third wide receiver. Pittsburgh shipped off Martavis Bryant in the offseason, leaving them with a starting team of Brown and JuJu Smith-Schuster. If Washington continues to play as he has early in camp, this could again be one of the best receiver corps in the NFL.