Talk About The Eagles

Posted: October 30th, 2018 | Author: | Filed under: Philadelphia Eagles | Comments Off on Talk About The Eagles

The Eagles got better on Tuesday.

That price is less than ideal and we’ll need to discuss that to fully appreciate the deal. For now, less focus on the newest Eagle, Golden Tate.

The Eagles added a weapon to their receiving corps. Tate is one of the best RAC (Run After Catch) receivers in the league. He can take a short or medium throw and turn that into a big play. Tate doesn’t have explosive speed. He isn’t special athletically. He does have great instincts and he is ultra-competitive with the ball in his hands.

I happened to be watching a game this weekend (college I think). A runner/receiver got into the open field and was going down the sideline. As a defender approached, the player just stepped out of bounds. What the hell are you doing???? Yes, I actually yelled that at the TV. It doesn’t matter if I care about the game. It drives me nuts when players “tackle” themselves.

Tate fights for every inch he can get and I love that.

The Eagles have one star WR in Alshon Jeffery. They are building a solid corps of players around him. Nelson Agholor can play in the slot or outside. He has solid speed and can be a playmaker when he’s in space. Agholor isn’t nearly as instinctive as Tate. Jordan Matthews has become a good role player. He lacks top speed, but uses his size well and has made several tough catches.

Now you add Tate. He has been highly productive in recent years. He caught more than 90 passes in each year from 2014 to 2017. He’s on pace to get there again this year. Tate was more of a vertical threat when he played in Seattle. He has the skills to play inside or outside. He can stretch the field or move the chains.

Tate can be a weapon on end arounds, jet sweeps or even playing out of the backfield. He gives the coaches another weapon to work with. He gives Carson Wentz another player to get the ball to.

The NFL is all about offense these days. The Eagles are 18th in yards and 21st in points. They must get better on offense. We saw in 2016 that Carson Wentz can only do so much when he doesn’t have weapons. Throwing the ball to Paul Turner and Dorial Green-Beckham isn’t going to get it done.

Howie Roseman decided that adding a playmaker like Golden Tate was worth the cost, worth the risk. The Eagles have good coaches. They have a great QB. They needed another weapon.

Beyond the tangibles…I think Tate is a good fit for the Eagles. He plays with a lot of attitude. He wants to have fun and to let you know he’s beating you. You hear Doug Pederson talking about how players have to “bring the juice”. Tate is a freaking barrel of juice.

https://twitter.com/DetroitVideos/status/1057333500947431424

https://twitter.com/DetroitVideos/status/1057333738139500544

Execution fuels emotion. Tate makes plays and then celebrates in his own crazy way. I think he’ll energize his new teammates and I think fans will love him.

It is fair to wonder about the wisdom of using a 3rd round pick on a 30-year old WR for a 4-4 team. What is Howie’s message?

Any time you have a star QB, you have a chance. I get where he’s coming from.

The Eagles obviously felt Tate wasn’t just a veteran receiver. They saw him as someone worth trading for, even though there are some issues. He is 30 and is set to be a free agent after the year. This could be just a rental.

It is possible the Eagles could end up re-signing Tate. There are all kinds of cap issues to deal with, but it is clear the Eagles understand that Wentz needs good receivers.

It is possible the Eagles could get a 2020 compensatory pick if Tate signs a big deal elsewhere. It wouldn’t be a third rounder, but you would look at the difference between the third and whatever they got back as the rental price. The Eagles see value in having Tate as part of this team for the rest of the 2018 season.

Roseman said the Eagles talked to the other 31 teams and asked about every player you could imagine they would have interest in. As it turned out, some teams weren’t selling. Other teams were, but the price was high. Tate was the best player they could get at a price they could live with.

I know many of you wanted DeSean or LeSean, but their teams didn’t end up moving them. DL help would have been nice, but there weren’t a whole lot of options.

The Eagles did get better on Tuesday. How much better? Was it worth it? Time will tell on those questions.

*****

It is funny for any people from the Eagles Message Board to have a player named Tate on the roster. TATE was the key section on the EMB. Talk About The Eagles. That forum gave us endless Brian Urlacher rumors, the signing of LeCharles Bentley and infinite love for every WR the Eagles didn’t draft or sign in free agency.

TATE and Tate would have been a glorious combination a decade ago.

*****

This seems extremely optimistic, but I’d love it if he was right.

WR Mack Hollins and TE Richard Rodgers could be coming back in the next few weeks.

Pederson made it sound like Mike Wallace was still down the road.

_

Comments are closed.