10 Lessons the 2016 NFL Preseason Has Taught Us So Far

​Vance McDonald Is the 49ers’ Starting Tight End

How much more does he have to do to prove it? From Weeks 11 to 16 last year, San Francisco 49ers tight end Vance McDonald became quarterback Blaine Gabbert's security blanket. Over that span of time, he posted an average 45 yards and 0.6 touchdowns on 5 targets per game, a full-season pace of 720 yards and 10 touchdowns on 80 chances. That’s really good.

This preseason, McDonald and Gabbert have both continued to start, and their connection is still intact. On two targets so far, McDonald has 2 catches for 54 yards and a touchdown. Remarkably, he’s the only player Gabbert can get the ball to consistently (he’s 2 for 8 to other players this preseason), so we could see a lot of tight end dump-offs this year.