By Chet Gresham – @ChetGresham
Follow @walterfootball for updates.
Last year on Monday Night Football, we saw a man’s soul ripped from his body in real time. That man’s name was Chris Conte, and his soul’s new owner was Pittsburgh Steelers tight end, Vance McDonald. On third-and-10 from the Steelers’ 25-yard line, Ben Roethlisberger hit McDonald on a 15-yard out. McDonald then headed down the sideline where he met Mr. Conte. No words were likely spoken, but the message was clear, GET OFF ME! Conte had no choice, as he was tossed to the side like a losing lottery ticket. McDonald finished the play 75 yards later in the end zone. Conte didn’t return to that game or the field for the rest of the season.
McDonald’s unholy reckoning with Conte isn’t the first time McDonald has made a defender want to change his identity. Breaking tackles and picking up yards after the catch are a regular occurrence for McDonald. Last season. he ranked fourth in yards after the catch for tight ends and first in percentage of broken tackles to receptions. Only D.J. Moore and Golden Tate had a better percentage for pass catchers with over 35 receptions. That’s not too shabby for a tight end.
We can count on McDonald destroying defenders after he catches the ball, but how are his hands? Well, I’m glad you asked. Last season, he had a true catch rate of 89.3 percent, meaning he caught nearly 90 percent of catchable targets according to PlayerProfiler.com. That stat looks even better when you add in that he caught 10-of-15 contested targets, which for you math and Satan worshippers, is 66.6 percent, which fits his soul-snatching ways. Only Travis Kelce and Eric Ebron had more contested receptions for tight ends last season, and they had 29 and 27 contested targets compared to McDonald’s 15.
But McDonald only had 73 targets and 50 receptions last year! Will he see more targets in 2019? Thank you again for your perfectly valid question, prop person. The answer, as many of you know, is, yes. The Steelers lost their best receiver from last year. You might know him from such bank and train robberies as . . . oh, wait, wrong Jesse James. Yes, they lost James, who split snaps with McDonald, but much more importantly they lost Antonio Brown, who was second in the league with 169 targets.
There are plenty of targets to be had, especially on the pass-happiest team in the league last year, but at the moment the man who will take Brown’s spot as a starter is unknown. James Washington, Donte Moncrief, Diontae Johnson? You tell me. There won’t be one person who grabs the bulk of Brown’s targets, but the one person who proved himself well last season, who is still on the team, is McDonald.
But can McDonald stay healthy? I knew you’d bring that up. This interview is over! Ok. Ok. Yes, McDonald is widely known as prone to injury. If he weren’t, he’d probably be a top-five fantasy tight end playing in San Francisco instead of remaking his career in Pittsburgh right now. The good news is that he did play 15 games last season and finished healthy after missing training camp and the first game of the season due to a foot injury. So yes, he’s risky, but there was a glimmer of hope after staying healthy last season, and if you get 15 full games out of him with Antonio Brown and Jesse James out of town, you’re going to get a considerable return on your investment. For more recommendations, check out WalterFootball.com’s Fantasy Football Rankings.
More 2016 Fantasy Football Articles:
Fantasy Football Rankings
2016 Fantasy Football Rankings:
2016 Fantasy Football Rankings: Quarterbacks - 9/7 (Walt)
Chet Gresham's Fantasy Football Quarterback Rankings - 8/30 (Chet)
2016 Fantasy Football Rankings: Running Backs - 9/7 (Walt)
Chet Gresham's Fantasy Football Running Back Rankings - 8/30 (Chet)
2016 Fantasy Football Rankings: Wide Receivers - 9/7 (Walt)
Chet Gresham's Fantasy Football Wide Receiver Rankings - 8/30 (Chet)
2016 Fantasy Football Rankings: Tight Ends - 9/7 (Walt)
Chet Gresham's Fantasy Football Tight End Rankings - 8/30 (Chet)
2016 Fantasy Football Rankings: Defenses - 6/15 (Walt)
2016 Fantasy Football Rankings: Kickers - 6/15 (Walt)
Fantasy Football Rookie Rankings - 5/13 (Walt)
Fantasy Football Rookie Rankings: Dynasty - 5/13 (Walt)
Fantasy Football Rookie Rankings: Dynasty - 5/27 (Chet)
2016 Fantasy Football Mock Drafts:
2016 Fantasy Football Mock Draft: PPR - 9/1 (Walt)
2016 Fantasy Football Mock Draft Video - 8/31 (Walt)
2016 Fantasy Football Mock Draft: Real Draft - 8/29 (Walt)
2016 Fantasy Football Mock Draft: Standard - 8/25 (Walt)
2016 Fantasy Football Mock Draft: 2-QB - 8/25 (Chet)
2016 Fantasy Football Mock Draft Video - 8/24 (Walt)
2016 Fantasy Football Mock Draft: PPR - 8/18 (Walt)
2016 Fantasy Football Mock Draft Video - 8/13 (Walt)
2016 Fantasy Football Mock Draft: Standard - 8/11 (Walt)
2016 Fantasy Football Mock Draft: Standard - 8/4 (Walt)
2016 Fantasy Football Mock Draft Video - 8/4 (Walt)
2016 Fantasy Football Mock Draft: PPR - 8/2 (Chet)
2016 Fantasy Football Mock Draft: PPR - 7/28 (Walt)
2016 Fantasy Football Mock Draft - 7/21 (Walt)
2016 Fantasy Football: MFL 10 Draft - 5/13 (Chet)
2016 Fantasy Football Cheat Sheets:
2016 Fantasy Football Cheat Sheet: Top 250 - 9/7 (Walt)
2016 Fantasy Football Cheat Sheet: Top 250 PPR - 9/7 (Walt)
2016 Fantasy Football Cheat Sheet: Top 250 2-QB - 9/7 (Walt)
2016 Fantasy Football Cheat Sheet: Top 250 Touchdown League - 9/7 (Walt)
2016 Fantasy Football Cheat Sheet: Custom - 9/7 (Walt)
2016 Fantasy Football: Dynasty Rankings - 9/7 (Walt)
2016 Fantasy Football PPR Rankings - 8/26 (Chet)
2016 Fantasy Football Spreadsheets - 9/7 (Walt)
2016 Fantasy Football Articles:
2016 Fantasy Football Stock Report: Training Camp - 9/7 (Walt)
2016 Fantasy Football Mock Draft Simulator - 9/7 (Walt)
2016 Fantasy Football Sleepers - 9/4 (Walt)
2016 NFL Preseason Recap, Fantasy Football Notes - 9/2 (Walt)
2016 Fantasy Football Preseason Stock - 9/2 (Walt)
2016 Fantasy Football Preseason Quarterback Targets - 9/2 (Walt)
2016 Fantasy Football Waiver-Wire Targets - 8/31 (Chet)
2016 Fantasy Football Busts - 8/31 (Walt)
Fantasy Football Auction Advice - 8/24 (Chet)
2016 Fantasy Football Round-by-Round Strategy Guide - 8/18 (Walt)
2016 Fantasy Football Daily Fantasy Preseason Week 2 Streaming Options - 8/18 (Chet)
2016 Fantasy Football Draft Queue: Wide Receivers and Tight Ends - 8/17 (Chet)
2016 Fantasy Football Draft Queue: Quarterbacks and Running Backs - 8/16 (Chet)
2016 Fantasy Football Training Camp Notes - 8/10 (Chet)
2016 Fantasy Football Wide Receivers to Avoid - 8/6 (Walt)
2016 Fantasy Football Running Backs to Avoid - 8/5 (Walt)
2016 Fantasy Football Notes - 7/26 (Chet)
2016 Fantasy Football Late-Round Wide Receiver Targets - 7/21 (Chet)
2016 Fantasy Football Late-Round Running Back Targets - 7/19 (Chet)
2016 Fantasy Football ADP Values - 7/14 (Chet)
2016 Fantasy Football: C.J. Anderson Profile - 7/7 (Chet)
2016 Fantasy Football Favorite MFL Players - 6/29 (Chet)
2016 Fantasy Football: 2016 NFL Draft Fallout: Chip Kelly - 6/23 (Chet)
2016 Fantasy Football: Marvin Jones Profile - 6/22 (Chet)
2016 Fantasy Football: Devin Funchess Profile - 6/15 (Chet)
2016 Fantasy Football 2-QB Draft - 6/9 (Chet)
Fantasy Football Beginner's Guide - 6/7 (Walt)
2016 Fantasy Football: Running Back Drafting and ADP - 6/3 (Chet)
2016 Fantasy Football: Quarterback Drafting and ADP - 6/1 (Chet)
2016 Fantasy Football: Eli Manning Profile - 5/25 (Chet)
2016 Fantasy Football: Jordan Matthews Profile - 5/24 (Chet)
2016 Fantasy Football Rookie Dynasty Draft Wrap-up - 5/18 (Walt)
2016 Fantasy Football: 2016 NFL Draft Fallout - 5/11 (Chet)
2016 Fantasy Football: MFL 10 Quarterback Values - 4/30 (Chet)
2016 Fantasy Football: MFL 10 Wide Receiver Values - 4/28 (Chet)
2016 Fantasy Football: Tight End Strength of Schedule - 4/25 (Chet)
2016 Fantasy Football: Wide Receiver Strength of Schedule - 4/21 (Chet)
2016 Fantasy Football: Running Back Strength of Schedule - 4/20 (Chet)
2016 Fantasy Football: Quarterback Strength of Schedule - 4/19 (Chet)
2016 Fantasy Football: MFL 10 - 2/19 (Chet)
2016 Fantasy Football Sleepers: Philip Rivers - 2/16 (Chet)
2016 Fantasy Football: Quarterback ADP vs. Reality - 2/12 (Chet)
2016 Fantasy Football Fallout: Marshawn Lynch Retires - 2/11 (Chet)
2016 Fantasy Football Fallout: Calvin Johnson Retires - 2/9 (Chet)
2016 Fantasy Football Forecast: Dynasty - 1/21 (Chet)
2016 Fantasy Football Forecast: Tight Ends - 1/19 (Chet)
2016 Fantasy Football Forecast: Wide Receivers - 1/14 (Chet)
2016 Fantasy Football Forecast: Running Backs - 1/13 (Chet)
2016 Fantasy Football Forecast: Quarterbacks - 1/12 (Chet)
2024 NFL Mock Draft - April 23
NFL Power Rankings - Feb. 22
Fantasy Football Rankings - Feb. 19
NFL Picks - Feb. 12
