Would you rather lose Vance McDonald or Sean Davis for the season?
This may come as a surprise to you, but this is a scenario I have actually asked people this offseason. There is a very good case to be made for both players.
With the always healthy, Jesse James, no longer with the Steelers, the offense is counting on Vance McDonald in a big way. Though he is often injured and has never played a 16-game season in his 6 NFL seasons, Vance will look to see an uptick in snaps, and will be relied upon early by the Steelers.
Antonio Brown is also out of the fold, so there are even more targets to go around. Vance has shown that, when healthy, he is capable of being one of the best overall tight ends in the league. McDonald’s physicality against the run and his shockingly good run-after-the-catch ability make him perhaps the second biggest threat on the Steelers offense outside of Roethlisberger.
At the same time, Sean Davis is extremely important in his own right. Though he hasn’t been a standout player for the Steelers in his first three seasons; he found a home at free safety in 2018, and stands to improve with more experience.
Like the tight end position, there is a severe lack of depth at free safety outside of Davis. In fact, Sean Davis is the only true free safety on the team – making him less than expendable for the Steelers. If Sean Davis were to go down this year, I don’t know what the Steelers would do at free safety.
So who would you rather lose for the season: Vance McDonald or Sean Davis?