There are much better uses of cap space
At the end of the day, there are a number of ways that Pittsburgh could be using their cap space more effectively. McDonald and Ebron’s contracts average out to $11.1 million per year and they are 2 of the top 20 paid tight ends in the league. However, there are clearly better uses of this money.
Instead of splitting very good money between two below-average players, why not put that towards a good tight end. $11 million could get you any tight end in the league outside of Kelce or Kittle. If they were willing to spend just a few million more, they could pay for a player of this caliber as well. Even a player like Zach Ertz would be approximately $2.5 million cheaper than a lackluster combination of Ebron and McDonald.
The Steelers could also go cheap at tight end and use this money on a different position entirely. JuJu Smith-Schuster and Bud Dupree are both unrestricted free agents after the 2020 season and could end up signing with other clubs. From the money they would save by letting go of Ebron and McDonald, they could put that towards retaining a star player on the team.
Tight ends are an important part of football, and it’s hard to execute a gameplan without them. However, there’s no doubt that the Steelers are overpaying their tight ends, and until they start playing at a much higher level, they are proving to be a waste of money this year.