Tight end Vance McDonald announced his retirement from professional football on Friday.

The 30-year-old McDonald played eight years in the NFL, suiting up with the San Francisco 49ers and Pittsburgh Steelers.

McDonald released a statement via Steelers’ official website, writing that he and his family “are so grateful for everything NFL football has provided us.”

“It’s always been our dream and mission to leverage the platform given us through the NFL to help serve and uplift others along the way, and we will continue to find ways to serve others as we begin this next chapter of our lives. I am proud to retire a Steeler,” he added.

Vance McDonald was selected in the second round of the 2013 NFL Draft by San Francisco. He spent four years with the 49ers organization, making 30 starts before being traded to Pittsburgh.

Steelers initially brought in McDonald as a backup tight end, but the University of Rice product quickly emerged as an important player for the team. While he wasn’t too productive in the passing game, he earned respect for his blocking abilities.

McDonald’s best season as a pro came in 2018 when he had 50 catches for 610 yards and four touchdowns. This included a monster 75-yard score in Week 3 against Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

With McDonald being out, the Steelers are now short on the position and only have Eric Ebron and Zach Gentry as their TEs ahead of 2021. They will most likely address the issue through draft and free agency.

The post Steelers’ TE Vance McDonald Retires After 8 Seasons in the NFL appeared first on toppoptoday.com.

After a tough playoff loss to divisional rivals Cleveland Browns, Pittsburgh Steelers already started making changes for the next season. And this came at the expense of running back Trey Edmunds, who was waived by the team on Tuesday.

The Steelers announced the move in a brief message posted on their social media.

The move isn’t a surprising one, considering Edmunds barely got to play in 2020 despite the Steelers struggling with the running game. The 26-year-old Edmunds had only seven snaps on the offense during the season while receiving 20 snaps on special teams.

Edmunds spent the previous three seasons in Pittsburgh, playing in 19 games and rushing for 92 yards. He also had six receptions for 48 yards.

This might not be the end of Edmunds’ career with the Steelers. Reportedly, the team made a move in order to allow him to find more playing time elsewhere. If this doesn’t happen, the organization will give him a look ahead of training camp for the 2021 NFL season.

Edmunds, whose brother Terrell Edmunds plays as a safety for Steelers, previously also suited up for New Orleans Saints. He was an undrafted free agent out of Maryland in 2017.

The post Steelers Waive RB Trey Edmunds appeared first on toppoptoday.com.

Pittsburgh Steelers’ wideout JuJu Smith-Schuster told reporters on Wednesday that he won’t be doing his pre-game dancing act on opponents’ logos anymore. According to Smith-Schuster, he doesn’t want to be a “distraction” for his teammates anymore.

Whenever Pittsburgh played an away game, Smith-Schuster had a habit of going to the middle of the field before the contest and doing a dance on the logo. He would later post on social media TikTok, where he has a huge following.

The 24-year-old wideout drew some harsh criticism in recent weeks because of this, with many believing he was disrespectful to the opponents. This coincided with Steelers’ three-game losing streak and the fact that the players of the opposing team said Smith-Schuster’s act made them more motivated to play against him. Resulting in the play below.

It is unclear whether the criticism or the hit made Smith-Schuster change his routine, but he decided to stop with the dance for now.

“For the betterment of myself and my teammates, I’m going to stop dancing on the logos,” Smith-Schuster told reporters. “For me, honestly, I was dancing when we were undefeated. I was dancing when we lost our three games. I’m not going to change the person who I am.”

Smith-Schuster is in the midst of a struggling 2020 campaign in which he is averaging a career-low 8.2 yards per catch and failed to have a 100 yards game. He has 82 receptions for 670 yards and seven touchdowns in 14 games.

The post Steelers Wideout JuJu Smith-Schuster Will Stop Dancing on Opponents’ Logos appeared first on toppoptoday.com.

Tight end Vance McDonald announced his retirement from professional football on Friday.

The 30-year-old McDonald played eight years in the NFL, suiting up with the San Francisco 49ers and Pittsburgh Steelers.

McDonald released a statement via Steelers’ official website, writing that he and his family “are so grateful for everything NFL football has provided us.”

“It’s always been our dream and mission to leverage the platform given us through the NFL to help serve and uplift others along the way, and we will continue to find ways to serve others as we begin this next chapter of our lives. I am proud to retire a Steeler,” he added.

Vance McDonald was selected in the second round of the 2013 NFL Draft by San Francisco. He spent four years with the 49ers organization, making 30 starts before being traded to Pittsburgh.

Steelers initially brought in McDonald as a backup tight end, but the University of Rice product quickly emerged as an important player for the team. While he wasn’t too productive in the passing game, he earned respect for his blocking abilities.

McDonald’s best season as a pro came in 2018 when he had 50 catches for 610 yards and four touchdowns. This included a monster 75-yard score in Week 3 against Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

With McDonald being out, the Steelers are now short on the position and only have Eric Ebron and Zach Gentry as their TEs ahead of 2021. They will most likely address the issue through draft and free agency.

The post Steelers’ TE Vance McDonald Retires After 8 Seasons in the NFL appeared first on toppoptoday.com.

After a tough playoff loss to divisional rivals Cleveland Browns, Pittsburgh Steelers already started making changes for the next season. And this came at the expense of running back Trey Edmunds, who was waived by the team on Tuesday.

The Steelers announced the move in a brief message posted on their social media.

The move isn’t a surprising one, considering Edmunds barely got to play in 2020 despite the Steelers struggling with the running game. The 26-year-old Edmunds had only seven snaps on the offense during the season while receiving 20 snaps on special teams.

Edmunds spent the previous three seasons in Pittsburgh, playing in 19 games and rushing for 92 yards. He also had six receptions for 48 yards.

This might not be the end of Edmunds’ career with the Steelers. Reportedly, the team made a move in order to allow him to find more playing time elsewhere. If this doesn’t happen, the organization will give him a look ahead of training camp for the 2021 NFL season.

Edmunds, whose brother Terrell Edmunds plays as a safety for Steelers, previously also suited up for New Orleans Saints. He was an undrafted free agent out of Maryland in 2017.

The post Steelers Waive RB Trey Edmunds appeared first on toppoptoday.com.

Pittsburgh Steelers’ wideout JuJu Smith-Schuster told reporters on Wednesday that he won’t be doing his pre-game dancing act on opponents’ logos anymore. According to Smith-Schuster, he doesn’t want to be a “distraction” for his teammates anymore.

Whenever Pittsburgh played an away game, Smith-Schuster had a habit of going to the middle of the field before the contest and doing a dance on the logo. He would later post on social media TikTok, where he has a huge following.

The 24-year-old wideout drew some harsh criticism in recent weeks because of this, with many believing he was disrespectful to the opponents. This coincided with Steelers’ three-game losing streak and the fact that the players of the opposing team said Smith-Schuster’s act made them more motivated to play against him. Resulting in the play below.

It is unclear whether the criticism or the hit made Smith-Schuster change his routine, but he decided to stop with the dance for now.

“For the betterment of myself and my teammates, I’m going to stop dancing on the logos,” Smith-Schuster told reporters. “For me, honestly, I was dancing when we were undefeated. I was dancing when we lost our three games. I’m not going to change the person who I am.”

Smith-Schuster is in the midst of a struggling 2020 campaign in which he is averaging a career-low 8.2 yards per catch and failed to have a 100 yards game. He has 82 receptions for 670 yards and seven touchdowns in 14 games.

The post Steelers Wideout JuJu Smith-Schuster Will Stop Dancing on Opponents’ Logos appeared first on toppoptoday.com.