Steelers unlikely to pick up Vance McDonald’s 2020 option, but restructured deal could keep him in Pittsburgh

The Steelers have a number of personnel choices they will have to make forward of the commence of the league’s new yr on March 18. Amid the team’s personnel choices incorporates tight finish Vance McDonald, whose club solution would count $7,127,500 against Pittsburgh’s 2020 income cap.

Presented their current income cap situation (Pittsburgh’s current cap room is about $1.fifty eight million, in accordance to Above The Cap), CBS Sports NFL insider Jason La Canfora informed ninety three.7 The Supporter on Friday that he does not expect McDonald to be back in Pittsburgh in 2020 at his current cap hit. This suggests that, unless of course the Steelers can concur to a restructured offer, the tight finish is expected to come to be a cost-free agent.

Though McDonald has been the team’s most successful tight finish since coming to Pittsburgh (by using a trade with San Francisco) just right before the commence of the 2017 time, he will be turning 30 this offseason and is coming off a yr that noticed him catch just 38 passes for 273 yards and a few touchdowns. In defense of McDonald, he did not have the luxury of playing with Ben Roethlisberger last time the Steelers’ offense, as a whole, noticed a major decrease in production with Huge Ben out because of to an elbow personal injury. 

Following injuries marred his initial time in Pittsburgh, McDonald put up profession quantities in 2018, catching 60 of 72 targets for 610 yards and 4 touchdowns. His greatest engage in of the yr took location in Pittsburgh’s 7 days three get over Tampa Bay, as his 76-lawn landing catch — that integrated a unpleasant stiff-arm of defensive back Chris Conte — propelled the Steelers to their initial victory of the time.

The 55th overall pick in the 2013 draft, McDonald has started in 35 of his 39 game titles with the Steelers. Last time, he started over rookie Zach Gentry (a fifth-spherical pick out of Michigan) and 4-yr veteran Nick Vannett, who was obtained for the duration of an in-time trade with Seattle. Vannett, who designed 6 commences in thirteen game titles with the Steelers in 2019, is an unrestricted cost-free agent who earlier this offseason mentioned that he hopes to resign with the Steelers this offseason.

Pittsburgh may perhaps elect to expend their initial pick in the draft — the 50th overall pick — on the tight finish situation. Two doable choices for the Steelers are Purdue’s Brycen Hopkins and Vanderbilt’s Jared Pinkney. Hopkins, the 48th-very best participant in CBS Sports’ 2020 prospect rankings, caught 61 passes for 830 yards and 7 touchdowns last time. Pinkney, the 56th-rated participant on CBS’ prospect rankings, caught 114 passes and fourteen touchdowns for the duration of his time with the Commodores.

Though McDonald’s agreement situation is undoubtedly a precedence for the Steelers, Pittsburgh’s best personnel precedence over the following thirty day period is outside linebacker Bud Dupree, the team’s 2015 initial-spherical pick who is coming off of a profession yr that noticed him file eleven.5 sacks with 4 pressured fumbles and two fumble recoveries. The Steelers are expected to franchise tag Dupree if the two sides cannot come to conditions on a longterm agreement by March 10, the deadline for NFL teams to tag gamers. Dupree’s franchise tag would price the Steelers about $sixteen.26 million for the 2020 time.

Pittsburgh is also expected to prolong 2017 initial-spherical pick T.J. Watt’s agreement this offseason. Watt, a two-time Professional Bowl assortment, was named All-Professional in 2019 just after recording fourteen.5 sacks although main the league with 8 pressured fumbles.