Steelers trade for tight end Vance McDonald in attempt to upgrade position

In May, the Steelers released a tight end just 14 months after signing him to a $20 million contract.

Tuesday, the Steelers acquired a tight end whom another team had been shopping fewer than nine months after signing him to a $35 million contract.

With coach Mike Tomlin being forthright that his current tight end group has fallen short of expectations during this training camp, the Steelers swapped late-round picks with the San Francisco 49ers to acquire veteran tight end Vance McDonald on Tuesday.

“We were in the market for a guy that was NFL capable, and McDonald is that,” Tomlin said. “...The end result is we want to get better play and more competitive play at the position.”

Tomlin let it be known he was not satisfied with the play at the position so far: “The guys hadn't been consistently varsity enough for our comfort. It's as black and white as that.”

The returning tight ends — Jesse James, Xavier Grimble and David Johnson — were not supplemented to in any meaningful way over the offseason. This despite the spring release of Ladarius Green after he played just six games for the Steelers.

The Steelers' top tight ends expressed surprise at the trade for McDonald.

“You never really know when that kind of thing is going to happen, especially in a business like this,” said James, who became the Steelers' No. 1 tight end last season. “(But) we are going to welcome him with open arms and see what it can add to the group.”

A former second-round pick whom then-49ers coach Jim Harbaugh openly compared to Hall of Famer Mike Ditka — that's why San Francisco assigned him No. 89 — McDonald hasn't fulfilled expectations because of injury, a tendency to drop passes and other factors.

McDonald hasn't played a full 16-game season and has missed a quarter of the 49ers' 64 regular-season games since he was drafted in 2013. In December, the team signed him to a contract extension that guaranteed him $9.1 million and ran five years through 2021 (the final two seasons with club options). McDonald has the 15th-highest average salary among NFL tight ends.

But that deal was negotiated by Trent Baalke, whom the 49ers fired as their general manager less than four weeks later. His replacement, John Lynch, acknowledged during the draft in April that he attempted to trade McDonald.

He finally found a taker in the Steelers, who gave up a fourth-round pick and got back a fifth-rounder. In effect, if, as expected, the Steelers are one of the league's top teams and the 49ers are one of its worst, the Steelers only lost out on trading down a handful of draft slots to get McDonald.

Then again, they have to assume the $2.1 million salary he's due this season, and McDonald's salary climbs throughout the course of his contract — albeit, nonguaranteed.

“He was a good player,” said Grimble, who spent a year as McDonald's teammate while on the 49ers' practice squad and offseason roster. “He's a strong guy, a do-it-all type of dude. He can run. He can block. He's got good size. He's a good person, too. Good guy. We will welcome him with open arms and get back to work.”

According to Pro Football Focus, McDonald has dropped 12 of 76 catchable passes in his career, a 15.8-percent drop rate that is the league's worst for a tight end who's had at least 75 catchable targets since 2013.

McDonald has 64 catches for 866 yards (13.5 average) and seven touchdowns in 48 NFL games.

The Steelers typically keep only three tight ends on their 53-man roster but had four late last season. Grimble has one season of experience on an active roster, and Johnson, known for his blocking and also ability to play fullback or H-back, is entering his ninth season.

“In terms of Week 1, I obviously see myself as The Guy,” James said. “I feel really confident in myself to be able to perform the job at a high level for our offense.”

While James' regular-season roster spot is safe, the trade could signal the end of Johnson's or Grimble's tenure in Pittsburgh.

“It's kind of into the preseason to bring in somebody,” Johnson said. “We don't know what's going on. Whatever decisions (management) makes, they make, you know?”

Chris Adamski is a Tribune-Review staff writer. Reach him at cadamski@tribweb.com or via Twitter @C_AdamskiTrib.