NFL CAREER – The New Orleans Saints signed James Washington as a free agent during the 2023 offseason, adding a versatile weapon who has experience in the slot and out wide. Washington, originally a second round pick (60th overall) by the Pittsburgh Steelers, is an explosive deep threat with terrific ball skills. Through five NFL seasons with Pittsburgh (2018-21) and Dallas (2022), Washington has accumulated 114 receptions for 1,629 yards and 11 touchdowns. Washington was a highly-touted prospect heading into the 2018 NFL Draft after a stellar four-year career at Oklahoma State, including winning the 2017 Biletnikoff Award as the nation's top college receiver. He will compete for snaps in New Orleans' receiver rotation.
CAREER TRANSACTIONS – Signed by New Orleans, 3/11/23; Signed to New York Giants practice squad, 1/11/23; Waived by Dallas, 1/4/23; Activated from Injured Reserve by Dallas, 12/10/22; Placed by Dallas on Injured Reserve, 8/3/22; Signed by Dallas to a one-year contract (UFA-PIT), 3/21/22; Reinstated by Pittsburgh from Reserve-COVID-19, 1/14/22; Placed by Pittsburgh on Reserve/COVID-19, 1/8/22; Signed by Pittsburgh to a four-year contract, 5/14/18; Selected by Pittsburgh in the second round (60th overall) of the 2018 NFL Draft.
2022 – Spending the first 14 weeks of the season on Injured Reserve with a broken foot, played in two games for Dallas and also spent two weeks in the postseason on the New York Giants practice squad. 2021 – Appeared in 15 games, two starts, and had 24 receptions for 285 yards and two touchdowns in his final season in Pittsburgh…Tied a season-high four catches for 69 yards at Green Bay, Oct. 3…Tallied four receptions for 65 yards and a touchdown at Minnesota, Dec. 9…In the playoff game at Kansas City, 1/16/22, recorded his first career postseason touchdown reception, a 15-yard catch from QB Ben Roethlisberger. 2020 – Played in all 16 regular season games for the first time in his career with ten starts, reeling in 30 catches for 392 yards and a career-best five touchdowns…Recorded a season-high five receptions for 36 yards against Houston, Sept. 27…Caught two passes for a season-high 80 yards against Washington, Dec. 7, including a 50-yard touchdown reception…In his postseason debut against Cleveland, 1/10/21, caught five passes for 72 yards. 2019 – • Played in 15 games with ten starts for the Pittsburgh Steelers and recorded career-highs in receiving yards (735) and receptions (44)…Led the Steelers in yards-per-catch (16.7 avg.) and also added three scores…Recorded the team's longest reception of the season, a career-best 79-yard touchdown catch against Cincinnati, Sept. 30…Set a single-game career-high with six receptions for 90 yards (15.0 avg.) and a touchdown against the Los Angeles Rams, Nov. 10…Recorded his first career 100-yard receiving game against Cleveland, Dec. 1, finishing with four receptions for a career-high 111 yards and a 30-yard game-tying touchdown catch. 2018 – Saw action in 15 games, starting six, and tallied 16 catches for 217 yards and one touchdown as a rookie…Made his NFL debut in a tie at Cleveland, Sept. 9…Recorded his first career reception in the first start of his career against Kansas City, Sept. 16, a 14-yard touchdown grab from Roethlisberger…Set a single-game season-high in receiving yards (65) against New England, Dec. 16.
COLLEGE – Left school as Oklahoma State's all-time leading receiver with 4,472 career receiving yards, ranked second in Big 12 history. Joined Rashaun Woods as the only players in Oklahoma State history to record at least 1,000 receiving yards and ten touchdowns in three different seasons…Recipient of 2017 Biletnikoff Award - nation's top receiver - and a unanimous All-American and All-Big 12 selection. Led nation with 1,549 receiving yards and 119.2 receiving yards-per-game in 2017…Earned first-team All-Big 12 honors as a junior after finishing second in the conference with 1,380 receiving yards. Tabbed National Offensive Player of the Week from the Walter Camp Football Foundation following a 296-receiving yard performance on nine catches and two touchdowns at Pittsburgh…As a sophomore totaled 1,087 receiving yards and 10 touchdown catches en route to securing second-team All-Big 12 honors…Led OSU with six TD receptions in 2014, ranked fourth in the nation among freshmen…Earned his degree in agricultural business with an option in farm and ranch management.
PERSONAL – Played three years at Stamford (Texas) HS from 2011-13 and won back-to-back Class 1A Division I state titles at AT&T Stadium (2012-13)…Caught 73 passes for 1,331 yards and 24 touchdowns as a senior…Also competed in basketball, tennis and track in high school, where he won state championships in the 200-meter dash and triple jump as a senior…He and his wife, Julia, were married in March 2021 and have a daughter, Tatum…They have a 40-acre ranch near Tye and Merkel, Texas, with cows and horses.
