TCU’s Ar’Darius Washington is headed to the NFL Draft, forgoing two years of eligibility
TCU safety Ar’Darius Washington is ending his college career early, declaring for the NFL Draft on Tuesday night.
Washington made the announcement on social media, thanking God, his mom and siblings and his teammates and coaches at TCU.
“With all that being said,” Washington wrote, “playing in the NFL has always been a dream of mine. With many prayers and faith, I have decided to forgo the rest of my eligibility and declare for the 2021 NFL Draft.”
Washington, a redshirt sophomore, had two years of eligibility remaining (possibly three years with the NCAA freezing eligibility this fall amid the coronavirus pandemic). Players must be three years removed from high school to declare for the NFL Draft.
The biggest knock on Washington is expected to be his size. At 5-foot-8, 178 pounds, he does not have the ideal height to play at the next level.
But he’s produced as TCU’s starting weak safety the past two seasons. Washington had 37 tackles this season, including one tackle for loss, and five pass breakups. The 37 tackles were the seventh-most on the team.
Washington earned honorable mention All-Big 12 honors in 2020. He had an even better 2019 season as a redshirt freshman.
Washington was named the Big 12’s defensive freshman of the year in 2019, and was the second-highest graded safety last season by Pro Football Focus. Only teammate Trevon Moehrig was graded higher by PFF in 2019.
Washington allowed five catches out of 265 snaps in coverage in 2019, according to PFF. He also had five interceptions, which were the most by a freshman in the Gary Patterson era.
Washington joined TCU as a three-star prospect out of Evangel Christian Academy in Shreveport, Louisiana.
At weak safety, TCU will return Josh Foster next season. Foster, who had an interception in the Kansas State game this season, is listed as Washington’s primary backup.
The NFL draft is scheduled for April 29-May 1 in Cleveland.
This story was originally published December 29, 2020 at 7:30 PM.
