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Vance McDonald | Tight End

Team: Rice Owls
Age / DOB:  (22) / 6/13/1990
Ht / Wt:  6'5' / 260

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Recent News

49ers selected Rice TE Vance McDonald with the No. 55 overall pick.
A late-riser in the pre-draft process, McDonald drew some comparison's to a poor man's Jason Witten. At 6-foot-4 1/8 and 267 pounds, he caught 107 passes for 1,386 yards (12.9 YPR) and 15 touchdowns over his final three college seasons, playing slot receiver in Rice's spread offense. McDonald showed physical blocking prowess, but is inexperienced as an in-line tight end. He is a very good athlete with a 4.69 forty time and 33.5-inch vertical. McDonald's biggest issue at Rice was dropped passes; he doesn't appear to have smooth, natural hands. He'll try to fill the Delanie Walker shoes. Apr 26 - 8:11 PM

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Player News

Date:
Vance McDonald - TE - Owls

NFL Network's Daniel Jeremiah lists Rice TE Vance McDonald as his boom-or-bust prospect at the position.

"McDonald doesn't carry the off-field risk that most do on this list," Jeremiah writes. "His biggest issue is that he isn't a natural pass catcher... That is his only issue because he is an outstanding athlete and could emerge as the top tight end in this draft class." We've noticed the same issue, as McDonald tends to fight the football into his possession.
Source: NFL.com
Apr 23 - 10:16 AM
Vance McDonald - TE - Owls

NFL network's Daniel Jeremiah is hearing Rice TE Vance McDonald could be an early to mid second-round selection.

If only he could catch. McDonald is a very intriguing mover and has plenty of experience working from the slot and blocking at the second level. However, his hands are very unreliable and teams will likely have him play some snaps inline. He reminds us a bit of Jermichael Finley.
Source: Daniel Jeremiah on Twitter
Apr 19 - 8:52 AM
Vance McDonald - TE - Owls

NFL Network's Brian Billick compared Rice TE Vance McDonald to Dustin Keller.

"Similar build (and) athlete but inconsistent hands catcher," Billick tweeted. McDonald certainly does drop on target throws at times, but perhaps his biggest projection is the move to an inline alignment. He was a physical presence as a big slot receiver, but blocking longer and stronger defensive linemen might be more of a challenge.
Source: Brian Billick on Twitter
Mar 26 - 1:08 PM
Vance McDonald - TE - Owls

The Eagles worked out Rice TE Vance McDonald on Monday.

NFL insider Adam Caplan notes that McDonald is expected to be drafted in the second-round. He has issues, namely inconsistent hands and a projection to any inline snaps, but McDonald shows athleticism in the open field as a receiver and a willingness to drive block on the edge.
Source: Adam Caplan on Twitter
Mar 26 - 8:29 AM
Vance McDonald - TE - Owls

NFL.com's Gil Brandt writes that Rice TE Vance McDonald could go in the Top 70 picks after his impressive pro day.

"McDonald stood on his numbers from the NFL Scouting Combine. He did, however, participate in the positional workout, in which he started slowly," Brandt writes. "He had a couple of drops, but then caught everything. McDonald — who is explosive in the hips — also looked good in the blocking drills. It was a good show for the fast-rising tight end prospect, who has risen from virtual obscurity to likely being selected somewhere between picks No. 50-70 in the 2013 NFL Draft. This player could be very good in the NFL."
Source: NFL.com
Mar 19 - 4:22 PM
Vance McDonald - TE - Owls

NFL Network's Mike Mayock now lists Rice's Vance McDonald among his top five TEs.

McDonald checks in behind Tyler Eifert, Zach Ertz, Gavin Escobar, and Travis Kelce. We see some similarities to Jermichael Finley, however McDonald spent the majority of his time in the slot, so teams will have to predict success if they project the Owl to an inline spot.
Source: NFL.com
Mar 2 - 1:04 PM
Vance McDonald - TE - Owls

Rice TE Vance McDonald ran a 4.69 official forty, with a 1.67 10 yard split.

McDonald is a very fluid athlete that is comfortable in space after playing in the slot for the majority of his collegiate career. Teams might have to stretch in projecting him inline, but McDonald is a willing blocker at the receiver position. He needs to makes catches more consistently, however.
Feb 24 - 8:33 AM
Vance McDonald - TE - Owls

NFL Films' Greg Cosell likes Rice TE Vance McDonald as a prospect over Stanford's Zach Ertz based on film study.

McDonald was a glorified slot receiver at Rice, showing nice drive blocking and receiving skills from the spot. There are questions about if he can transition to an inline spot and his consistency to catch the football, but McDonald is very likely to be a second day selection.
Source: Adam Caplan on Twitter
Feb 23 - 10:52 AM
Vance McDonald - TE - Owls

NFL draft legend Gil Brandt tweeted Rice TE Vance McDonald might be his top sleeper in this year's class.

"He'll come out of next week's NFL Combine as one of the stars," McDonald wrote. The Rice product was a favorite of Senior Bowl executive director Phil Savage, and despite a few drops during the week of practice, McDonald impressed with his mobility in Mobile.
Source: Gil Brandt on Twitter
Feb 12 - 5:46 PM
Vance McDonald - TE - Owls

NFL scouts tell the National Football Post's Russ Lande that they would be surprised to see Rice TE Vance McDonald make it out of the second-round.

"Although he lacks top end speed, he displayed enough of everything else to have scouts tell me that he reminds them of Rob Gronkowski," Lande says. An obvious favorite of Senior Bowl executive director Phil Savage, McDonald was impressive during the event's practices despite a handful of drops.
Source: National Football Post
Feb 6 - 10:23 AM
Vance McDonald - TE - Owls

Draft insider Tony Pauline has moved Rice TE Vance McDonald from the fifth-round range into the third-round.

McDonald was used in a variety of ways at Rice, but has great length as a blocker with some separation skills to be a mismatch at the second level. A top-100 selection is definitely not out of the question.
Source: Philadelphia Eagles
Feb 5 - 4:18 PM
Vance McDonald - TE - Owls

The Eagles staff left the Senior Bowl impressed by Rice TE Vance McDonald, according to Tim McManus of Birds 24/7.

McManus expects the Eagles to add a tight end during the offseason and suggest McDonald or Cincinnati's Travis Kelce, whose brother is the starting center for the team. McDonald had a few drops throughout the week of practice and was used in a variety of ways at Rice, but there are a lot of intriguing qualities to the long tight end.
Source: Philly Mag
Feb 1 - 10:58 AM
Vance McDonald - TE - Owls

Senior Bowl Executive Director Phil Savage thinks Rice TE Vance McDonald will be a second-round pick.

CBS Sports's Dane Brugler is confident in a top-100 selection. McDonald certainly looked like the best tight end in Mobile but a few drops held him back. The Owl is blessed with a great frame and long arms, and was used from a variety of spots in Rice's offense.
Source: Dane Brugler on Twitter
Jan 30 - 10:26 AM
Vance McDonald - TE - Owls

Rice will play Air Force in the Armed Forces Bowl on December 29.

Rice tight end Vance McDonald has already received his Senior Bowl invite and will headline the game in terms of NFL prospects. For the Falcons, running back Cody Getz should shoulder the load.
Source: ESPN
Mon, Dec 3, 2012 02:59:00 PM