Eric Ebron, Pittsburgh Steelers

Let’s be honest: despite finishing 8-8, Pittsburgh had an ugly season. It began with Ben Roethlisberger’s elbow injury, continued with injuries to JuJu Smith-Schuster and lackluster play from most of their other receiving targets, and ended with one of the headlines of the year in Mason Rudolph’s altercation with Myles Garrett.

While it may seem gracious to give Pittsburgh’s tight end group a pass for the mediocre play of Rudolph and Devlin “Duck” Hodges, most could see that the pairing of Vance McDonald and Nick Vannett just wasn’t up to snuff. The pair combined for 72 receptions and just over 400 yards, with McDonald contributing the vast majority of both categories.

Enter Eric Ebron, one of the league’s forgotten talents at the position. After being selected 10th overall by Detroit in 2014, the league seemed to…forget he existed. Despite showing steady improvement in his production with the Lions, his was never a name mentioned in the upper echelons of tight end play.

Then came 2018. Under the wing of a finally healthy Andrew Luck, who started all 16 games for the first time in four years, Ebron blossomed into the player he could never quite be in Detroit. Luck clearly developed trust with the Newark native, targeting him on 110 passes; Ebron returned the favor, setting new career highs in receptions (66) and yards (750), and absolutely shattering his touchdown record with 13 (he had never recorded more than five in a season). He made the Pro Bowl for the first time in his career, and the Luck-Ebron connection seemed to be one that would pull Indianapolis back into playoff contention.

Then came 2019, and Luck’s surprise retirement. With Jacoby Brissett at the helm, Ebron’s production waned again, cutting his yardage total in half and catching 10 fewer touchdowns. Much of the issue seemed to be with Brissett, who only graced his star tight end with half as many targets (52) as Luck did the previous year. The Colts quickly moved on from Brissett to Philip Rivers, and Ebron now gets a chance to run routes for Big Ben.

At only $6 million a year, head coach Mike Tomlin is likely eager to get acquainted with the man he should expect to be his most productive tight end since the days of Heath Miller. Pittsburgh’s shiny new target has always excelled as a downfield target off the edge of the line or in the slot, averaging over 10 yards per reception and at least one catch over 44 yards in five straight seasons. Ebron will likely be a critical tool in helping Big Ben return to form in 2020.