Pittsburgh Steelers training camp: 3 Fantasy football storylines to watch
By Samuel Teets
The Pittsburgh Steelers fantasy football options have questions lingering entering camp.
In the past, the Pittsburgh Steelers boasted several top fantasy football options. While the defense became an unstoppable force in 2019, Pittsburgh’s entire offense turned in subpar fantasy football seasons. With some new faces joining the roster, the Steelers could undergo some serious offensive changes in 2020.
There aren’t many fantasy football storylines to watch on Pittsburgh’s defense. Apart from relying on Bud Dupree to replicate his career performance from last season, the unit remains unquestionably dominant.
However, Pittsburgh’s offense is another matter entirely. Subsequently, that’s where the fantasy focus lies as training camp begins.
3. Veteran tight ends battle for starting snaps
This offseason, the Steelers reached a surprising two-year, $12 million deal with former Pro Bowl tight end Eric Ebron. The former first-round pick joins Vance McDonald on an offense that plans to utilize both tight ends. The question is, how many snaps will each tight end see?
In 2019, Pittsburgh traded for Seattle’s Nick Vannett a few weeks into the season. Vannett played 39% of the team’s offensive snaps and 23 percent of the special teams snaps. While the quarterback situation rendered Pittsburgh’s tight ends almost useless as pass-catchers, Vannett played a decent role in the running game. Even dating back to his days at Ohio State, Vannett thrived as a blocker.
However, Vannett signed a two-year deal with the Denver Broncos this offseason, leaving McDonald as the team’s best blocking tight end. This is also the area where McDonald separates himself from Ebron. While the former Indianapolis Colt is the better red zone and overall receiving option, McDonald is more suited for battling in the trenches.
The Steelers will run a lot of two-tight end sets this coming season. Ebron should still emerge as the team’s primary receiving tight end, giving him a fantasy edge. In 2018, Ebron finished fourth among all tight ends in standard league points with 156.2. In comparison, McDonald finished 12th in 2018 with 83.0 points. Neither tight end ranked in the top 20 last year.
Ebron seems like the safer fantasy option, but he could lose snaps if his blocking doesn’t hold up. The coaching staff might also sub out Ebron on running downs in favor of McDonald.