Ar’Darius Washington is ready to defy the odds once again at TCU’s pro day
Ar’Darius Washington is already a success story.
He grew up the youngest of five in a single-parent household in Shreveport, Louisiana. His three older brothers were dropouts who never graduated from high school. Washington and his sister were the only ones from his family to graduate.
Washington then became the first person from his family to attend college on a football scholarship at TCU. Now he’s focused on furthering his story by making it to the NFL.
Washington is among five TCU players who will be taking part in the school’s pro day Friday, working out and meeting with a number of NFL executives and scouts.
“I had a tough background coming up, not too many make it out, so coming out of that is definitely a big thing,” Washington told the Star-Telegram this week in a phone interview. “There’s been a couple guys from Shreveport who have made it in the league and inspired me. I want to be the next one.”
Washington said Tampa Bay Buccaneers linebacker Devin White, Buffalo Bills cornerback Tre’Davious White and Cleveland Browns cornerback Greedy Williams are three recent players whose path to the NFL ran Shreveport. But the most famous native son is Hall of Fame quarterback Terry Bradshaw.
Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott grew up in nearby Haughton.
Washington is confident that he has the skills and abilities to join that group. The biggest knock on Washington is his size — he’s listed at 5-foot-8, 178 pounds — and how that could be difficult to overcome at the next level.
“I’ve been the same height my whole life,” Washington said. “They’ve always tried to use that against me, but I’ve defied the odds. I feel like I’ll defy the odds on pro day, too.”
Washington pointed to the success of another shorter safety in the league, fellow Louisiana native and Kansas City Chiefs standout Tyrann Mathieu, who has been named first-team All-Pro three times in his eight-year NFL career.
Washington’s college tape suggests that his height wasn’t a hindrance, either. He ranked as one of the top safeties in the country, playing primarily weak safety in Gary Patterson’s 4-2-5 defense.
Washington started all 10 games and finished with 37 tackles, including one tackle for loss and five pass breakups, in 2020. He earned honorable mention All-Big 12 honors. His 2019 season was even better 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 by Pro Football Focus. Only teammate Trevon Moehrig was graded higher by PFF in 2019.
“I feel like my film showcases everything I can do,” Washington said. “I displayed a lot of things on film that a lot of teams will like to see, so that’s why I’m ready to take that next step.”
NFL Draft analyst Dane Brugler of The Athletic projected Washington as a third- or fourth-round talent. The size factor is not going away, after all, even though Washington impressed on film.
“His lack of size lowers his margin for error,” Brugler said. “But his cover awareness and range help make up for those limitations. And testing well at his pro day will help teams look past the lack of size.”
Washington is ready to do just that. He’s spent the past several weeks training for this day in Florida.
Washington is known as a “freak athlete,” a player who can bench press 370 pounds, more than double his weight, and squat 640 pounds, more than triple his weight. He also has a power clean of 370 pounds and a 39-inch vertical.
Washington now has an opportunity to showcase that in front of NFL personnel.
“I’m excited and ready to put on a show,” Washington said. “I’m confident going into it. I feel like I’m going to check all the boxes and impress a lot of people with everything I can do.”
