Nick Vannett has admired the Steelers from afar for his entire life. So, when he got the call that he had been traded from the Seattle Seahawks to Pittsburgh earlier this week, he was ready to embrace his new city wholeheartedly.
“I’m so happy to be here,” Vannett said following his first practice Thursday, as Pittsburgh prepares for Monday night’s game against Cincinnati. “It’s been crazy 24 hours. I didn’t really know what to expect being here. But everyone welcomed me in with open arms and everyone’s been so friendly. I just love the vibe here and I’m excited to be a Steeler.
“That black and yellow is just different. I’m excited to put it on, go out there Monday and represent.”
The Steelers starter at tight end, Vance McDonald, missed practice Thursday with a shoulder injury. The injury is expected to limit him some in Monday night’s game against Cincinnati, but is not overly serious. That is not the case for backup Xavier Grimble, who was placed on injured reserve Wednesday with a calf issue.
Because of the uncertainty at the position, the Steelers made a trade — something out of the franchise’s character — for the second time in as many weeks. Pittsburgh also signed former Notre Dame tight end Alize Mack, who spent time with New Orlenas, to the practice squad.
Vannette’s connections to the Steelers run fairly deep. He met with Mike Tomlin and Kevin Colbert during the draft process. He spent time in the offseason working out with new Pittsburgh quarterback Mason Rudolph. He even shared a meal with James Conner and JuJu Smith-Schuster during the offseason.
A Columbus, Ohio native who played at Ohio State, Vannett has always kept a close eye on the Steelers, particularly the use of tights ends Heath Miller, McDonald and Jesse James.
"Growing up in Columbus, Ohio, there's so many Steelers fans,” Vannett said. “All you see is black and yellow. It's either that or Browns fans and, obviously, I'm not going to be a Browns fan."
So being traded to a team he knew well softened the blow of the deal.
“My heart sunk a little bit,” he said of receiving the news. “But, once I thought about it, I was like, ‘man, this is such a great opportunity to be a part of Steeler nation and come here, help contribute and bring some wins to this team.’”
Vannett is in his fourth year in the NFL. Last season was his best, catching 29 passes for 269 yards and three touchdowns for Seattle.
If McDonald is unable to participate at full capacity, Pittsburgh will need one of its relatively new faces at tight end to step up against the Bengals. That includes rookie Zack Gentry, who was the third string behind McDonald and Grimble.
“I feel very comfortable,” Gentry said. “I think I’ve come a long way and I’m playing a couple of different spots right now, being able to rotate and help out there. I feel really good.”
Gentry may be called upon more often because, as he says, the learning curve will be sharp for Vannett.
“It just depends on how much is going to be spent,” he said. “With his football background, he seems like a sharp guy. I’m sure he’ll be able to pick it up quickly. Hopefully he can learn on the fly and will be able to help out.”
And the Steelers will need it. Currently sitting at 0-3, a loss Monday is likely a death sentence for the 2019 season. But Vannett is optimistic.
“I feel like we’ve got everything we need in here,” he said. “Everybody says it’s a slow start and that we’re behind the eight ball, but it’s a long season. All it takes is to get some momentum going, we’ll start getting some wins and the rest is going to be history.”