PITTSBURGH (93.7 The Fan) – It seems so simple for Steelers offensive coordinator Arthur Smith as to why he designed a play for Darnell Washington in the red zone.
“Throw it to Shaq in the post,” Smith deadpanned.
The reference to NBA Hall of Famer Shaquille O’Neal and if he is positioned with his back to the basket, get him the ball. With Washington on that play, he had an eight-inch height advantage on the Seahawks defender on the successful two-point play Sunday.
“You see Darnell out there, he’s not small,” Smith said. “He did it in Denver last year. He got a DPI (defensive pass interference) in Cincinnati. You got answers in other spots, but you get those one-on-ones and try to take advantage.”
The touchdown that set up the two-point play was a similar call to DK Metcalf from Aaron Rodgers.
“You can try it all the time,” Smith said. “We got guys that can play above the rim-Darnell (6’7”), DK (6’4”), Jonnu Smith (6’3”). Calvin (Austin, 5’9”) will get offended if you said he couldn’t. Don’t want to offend Calvin. In all seriousness, it just depends. What’s the coverage? You get those matchups, you got to take advantage of that.”
Look to see more of it as the season progresses. We’ve seen Aaron Rodgers throw that pass to Washington several times in camp and he’s talked about his range as a pass receiver.
Jonnu was asked about that play and agreed with the analogy.
“That’s basically Shaq out there on an island with any defender you put out there with him,” Jonnu Smith said. “We all carry unique skillsets. That’s a superpower out there.”
So, who does Jonnu think would be the NBA comp for him?
“If he’s Shaq, I’m LeBron.”