TE Nick Vannett Traded from Seahawks to Steelers for 5th-Round Draft Pick

Seattle Seahawks tight end Nick Vannett has been traded to the Pittsburgh Steelers in exchange for a 2020 fifth-round draft pick, the Seahawks announced Wednesday.

ESPN's Adam Schefter reported Tuesday night that the Seahawks and Steelers were putting the finishing touches on a trade.

The move comes after Steelers starting tight end Vance McDonald was seen wearing a sling at the team's facility Tuesday. McDonald left Pittsburgh's 24-20 loss to the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday with what ESPN's Brooke Pryor described as a shoulder injury.

"Tight end became a more obvious need after Vance McDonald left Sunday's game with an injury," Pryor added following Schefter's report. "Depth behind him (Xavier Grimble, Zach Gentry), left something to be desired. This trade helps with that."

Earlier Tuesday, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette's Ray Fittipaldo reported the Steelers had signed tight end Alize Mack to their practice squad.

Prior to his injury, McDonald had 10 receptions for 88 yards and two touchdowns—both of which came against the Seahawks in Week 2. By comparison, Vannett has four catches for 38 yards and no touchdowns through three games. However, the 2016 third-round pick was behind Will Dissly on Seattle's depth chart.

Vannett had his most productive NFL season in 2018 with 269 yards and three touchdowns on 29 catches across 15 games. With McDonald's availability in question, Vannett is an obvious upgrade over the Steelers' other options.

Injury has hampered the Steelers offense in a big way already with starting quarterback Ben Roethlisberger lost for the season in Week 2 because of an elbow injury. The Pro Bowler underwent surgery Monday.

Moving forward, backup-turned-starting quarterback Mason Rudolph has a new target to help the Steelers notch their first win of 2019.

Pittsburgh hosts the Cincinnati Bengals on Monday Night Football in Week 4.