Opportunity is in front of Jordan Washington after building up to '260 and change'

Last year, Longhorns tight end Jordan Washington was on the field for 28 offensive snaps in contests against Colorado State, UTSA, and ULM. He didn’t log so much as a target in those opportunities. Washington also didn’t see any time on special teams. Playing time was hard to come by for the 6-foot-4, 264-pounder, especially with seasoned veterans like Gunnar Helm, Juan Davis, and Amari Niblack ahead of him.

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That trio is gone, with Helm on the Tennessee Titans, Davis out of eligibility, and Niblack at Texas A&M. Though the Longhorns brought in Cal transfer Jack Endries, tight ends coach Jeff Banks has high expectations for Washington in his second year on the 40 Acres.

“He brings that every-down tight end,” Banks said last week. “(You) were asking about Jack playing in line, Jordan Washington now is 260 and change. He can catch. He’s got great catch radius. I think the physicality with the pads on in the run game is going to be the key for him. He was 218, he goes to 260, he gets hurt, he has not a big body of work for blocking, and now he comes into fall camp against some real D-Ends.”

If it weren’t for the addition of Endries, Washington would be in line to be Texas’ starter at tight end. And though there’s a notion that Washington’s spring upper body injury was the impetus for Texas dipping into the portal, Banks said Washington and the rest of the tight end room was told in the winter that the Longhorns were looking to add another. After all, the remaining tight ends accounted for almost no combined in-game production and zero total starts.

“The whole room was great,” Banks said. “You’ve got to be transparent. You’ve got to be honest with your players. We sat down with all of them together before spring in the middle of winter and said ‘hey look guys, we’re going to bring someone in. I need your help recruiting them here, too, so when they come to visit they feel that.’

“These players were unselfish. They want to win. Jordan Washington was great. Spencer (Shannon) was great. They were all great. They get it. We had zero starts coming back. They understand. I explained it to them. I think it also raised the level of competition in that room as we brought Jack.”

Even though Endries has been running with the ones and has stepped into a leadership role, there’s a huge opportunity for Washington. The Longhorns love deploying 12 personnel sets that place two tight ends on the field.

He’ll have to make the most of a journey several other tight ends at Texas have had to go on to see those opportunities.

The Longhorns have a strong record at tight end over the past few seasons. Ja’Tavion Sanders went from making only special teams appearances in 2021 to becoming a major weapon for the Longhorns in 2022 and 2023. He was eventually picked with the first pick of the fourth round of the 2024 draft.

Helm went from occasional action in 2021, to more reps in 2022, to TE2 in 2023, to TE1 in 2024. He set several Texas tight end records for the Longhorns last season, breaking marks that belonged to Sanders, on his way to his own fourth round selection in the 2025 draft.

Both of those players had to develop in order to earn the trust of Steve Sarkisian‘s staff. Washington is doing the same, and Banks sees a true weapon for Texas as the rest of Washington’s game rounds into form during preseason camp.

“He is a red zone problem as he gets going because he has such a good catch radius and he has great hands,” Banks said.

Washington was ranked as the No. 244 overall prospect, the No. 15 tight end, and the No. 42 player in Texas in the 2024 Rivals Industry Ranking. On3 ranked Washington as the No. 152 overall prospect, the No. 9 tight end, and the No. 24 player in Texas.

While in high school, Washington weighed much less than “260 and change.” He was listed at 225 pounds upon his signing by Texas. The Longhorns also said Washington’s hands measured at 10.5 inches in December 2023, a measurement that would have been tops among tight ends at the 2025 NFL Combine. Anyone who has shaken Washington’s hands would agree that they are massive.

He used the hands more often as a receiver for a Langham Creek team that went 9-11 across his junior and senior seasons. His senior film shows a handful of snaps with Washington lined up as an attached tight end or even as an offset “H”, but most of his work was done in the slot for the Lobos. That’s not a problem, as he matched up with safeties and linebackers often as he’ll be doing at Texas.

But Banks’ point was salient. Despite his immense size, there’s still room to grow as a blocker. Being 6-foot-4, 264 helps, but size alone doesn’t make a player a good blocker.

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That’s what made Washington missing the spring such a downer. That’s what makes this preseason so important for Washington. Davis logged 304 snaps in 2024, mostly as the second tight end with Helm. Washington is more likely to be the in-line component of 12 personnel looks for Texas, with Endries working as the move piece a la Davis and Sanders in previous years.

There’s plenty of playing time available for Washington. This preseason functions as an opportunity for him to earn his place in Banks’ circle of trust as a key component of the 2025 Longhorn offense.