Steelers to Host USC WR Tahj Washington for Pre-Draft Visit

The Pittsburgh Steelers are hosting USC wide receiver Tahj Washington for a pre-draft visit, according to Mike DeFabo of the Athletic. Washington becomes the fourth known wide receiver that the team is targeting, joining Ricky Pearsall, Xavier Legette, and Malachi Corley on official 30 visits.

Washington had an intriguing journey, starting out at Memphis and then transferring to USC to play with Caleb Williams. A dynamic slot receiver, Washington has played with Calvin Austin III while at Memphis, and his familiarity could be something that the Steelers like, and helped put him on the team’s radar far before this season and draft cycle.

Washington’s tape is fun, and he’s got awesome explosiveness when he cuts on the inside of his foot and gets vertical. Some of the throws from quarterbacks at the Shirne Bowl fell short and Washington made them look good. For someone at his size, Washington has all the toughness needed to make combat catches in the slot. And he does a great job of vertically going up to get it. I knew what I was going to get in a guy like Malik Washington. For Tahj, I was interested due to the talent, but he has exceeded it. He runs crisp routes all over the field and checks the boxes.

So, it makes sense for the Steelers to target someone with his profile. He has return game upside and his ability to operate the underneath game and turn shallow targets into significant plays is something that popped off his tape, too. His Shrine Bowl was impressive and helped put him on the map to a lot of people, but the NFL is likely already high on him from his years at Memphis, and a solid year at USC, too. He is currently a projected sixth-round pick, and so this could be a guy that the team comes back to and doubles up on at the position to add quality depth.