During the 2018 NFL offseason, Golden Tate signed a 4-year $37.5 million dollar contract with the New York Giants. Tate would end up serving a 4 game suspension for violating the NFL’s strict policy on performance-enhancing drugs, even though the substance was fertility medicine prescribed by his doctor, so Tate and his wife could have another child.
Tate would come back in his first game and score a long touchdown against the league’s best defense, the New England Patriots. Tate would finish the season with 676 receiving yards, and 6 touchdowns on 49 receptions, while just playing 11 games. Tate, a former Pro-Bowl selection, is poised for a breakout season, and here’s why.
Experience
Golden Tate is not some rookie who is just finding his grips in the league; Tate has been in the NFL for a decade now. Not only that, but he’s a winner, Tate won Super Bowl XLVIII with the Seattle Seahawks against the Peyton Manning-led Denver Broncos in an impressive 43-8 win. If you watch his film, you can see how comfortable he looks when going through his motions.
He’s not afraid to go over the middle in hospital pass alley, and he’s not afraid to absorb big blows from safeties either. Tate also looks like he’s making up his route as he’s running, which is shades of Wes Welker. Coaches call these players the “backyard” players. The coach basically says “hey, I don’t care what route you run, just get open”. Tate does just that, he normally exploits the holes in the opposing team’s defense. Coaches call this technique “get to the green”. It means exactly what it sounds like, get to where no one else is, and sit there. Even for an experienced beatdown veteran, Tate is still a dangerous threat on the field.
Daniel Jones’ Development with the New York Giants
Daniel Jones is now entering his second season as the Giants starting quarterback, and he’s coming back with a lot of experience. Jones played 13 games last year while having zero offensive line presence, and never had all 5 of his dangerous skill players play at the same time. Many more experienced players will say that the game slows down for them and they feel more comfortable. The last thing any defense needs is the gun-slinging Jones to feel even more comfortable than he already is. With Jones now feeling more comfortable in-game, you’ll see Jones make smarter and faster reads. Wouldn’t be surprised if we saw a 90+ yard passing touchdown from Jones to Tate this year.
Other Giants Players
The New York Giants have the best running back in the league, his name is Saquon Barkley, and Saquon Barkley could jump over buildings if he wanted to. The Giants also have the young Darius Slayton who led wide receiver rookies in touchdowns last year with 8. The Giants also have the returning Sterling Shepard who is one of the sneakiest players on the field. The Giants also have tight end Evan Engram who is simply known as “the matchup nightmare” when he’s healthy. Those players are all pro-bowl talents and take away the defense’s attention leaving Tate wide open for when he finds his “green.” How can coaches gameplan to stop 30 carries per-game from Barkley, and be ready for Tate to run a 40-yard post at the same time?
Conclusion
Golden Tate continues to be one of the most exciting players on the field at all times due to his route running abilities, his charisma, and his football intelligence. It may be too early to predict this, but if Tate stays healthy, and Covid-19 doesn’t end the season early, I predict that Tate catches 63 balls for 973 yards with 7 touchdowns, and he makes the pro-bowl as an alternate.