Steelers Vance McDonald could be an elite tight end in 2019

With Vance McDonald preparing for a massive role this year with the Steelers, he could prove to be one of the NFL’s best tight ends in 2019.

Pittsburgh Steelers tight end, Vance McDonald, is truly a rare commodity in today’s NFL. At 6’4” and 269 pounds, McDonald can block, catch, and run with the best of them.

Up until this point in his career, McDonald had always been in a committee role at tight end. That could very well change in 2019 with the Steelers.

Vance McDonald is often injured, and hasn’t played a full season in his 6-year career. However, with Jesse James and Antonio Brown no longer in the picture, it could be McDonald’s time to shine.

When healthy, McDonald excels as both a run blocker and a pass catcher. Vance has the ability to be a violent blocker with good technique and footwork for the position. Here’s a clip of him sealing the edge on a run play:

Though Vance can struggle with drops, he also has an innate ability to adjust to the ball and make difficult catches outside the framework of his body.

Because of his ability to box out traffic and extend, Vance can be a real match-up threat in the redzone. Here’s a clip of him putting this on display:

As a route runner, McDonald is smooth and savvy. He does an excellent job of selling his routes at the top, and shows off an impressive ability to create separation.

Here he is completely fooling veteran safety, Barry Church, on a spectacular route:

Perhaps the most impressive attribute Vance McDonald possesses is his ability to run after the catch. Here’s one of the most memorable plays of the 2018 season:

Outside of the now retired Rob Gronkowski, I’m not convinced there was a tight end more difficult to bring down than McDonald last season.

Time and again, Vance runs through arm tackles and looks to punish tacklers that stand in his way. Here are some clips of him doing exactly that:

The Steelers got the real deal when they traded with the 49ers for Vance McDonald for a 4th and 5th round pick swap. Vance is truly a do-it-all tight end that excels in each phase of the game.

Injuries have slowed Vance to just 51 starts in his first 6 seasons, but the big tight end is poised for a huge role in 2019. If he can stay on the field for all 16 games this year, he will undoubtedly hear his name called among the leagues premier tight ends in 2019.