Well as I predicted may happen, the Arizona Cardinals ended up drafting running back Jeremiyah Love.
After that occurred many people including myself assumed the Titans would grab defensive players Arvell Reese or Sonny Styles.
But the Titans had a different idea and a different vision. Whether or not Reese or Styles end up being the next great star, I very much respect the Titans for having their own game plan for this roster.
The Titans went ahead and surprised a lot of people and drafted Ohio State wide receiver Carnell Tate!
I like this pick a lot! While I basically assumed what everyone else did regarding who the Titans may pick if Love wasn't available, I did say in my recent post and multiple times throughout last year that the Titans seriously need help at wide receiver. Rookie QB Cam Ward really struggled finding open guys last season, especially since Calvin Ridley went down with a season ending injury due to a broken fibula. The rest of Ward's main targets were rookies themselves. But they had moments and hopefully they gained a lot of valuable experience.
Carnell Tate reminds me a bit of a cross between DeVonta Smith and Drake London.
He's been regarded as the safest pick in the Draft with a super high floor in regards to his potential. He's praised for his great hands, he doesn't drop many passes. He has great routes, can high point the ball, make contested catches, and has great natural instincts. He also is very good at run blocking which is ideal! Just a reliable player in general.
I guess I'm making Tate sound flawless but he is a great prospect and was considered the best receiver in the Draft by many!
I guess the only real flaw is more about his super high-end potential. Some don't consider Tate a freak athlete and he was actually the team's number two option at receiver. But the catch there is, Ohio State's number one receiver Jeremiah Smith is considered a generational super prospect in next year's draft. Also, while opinions vary, I've heard people say Jaxon Smith-Njigba wasn't considered the number one receiver when he was at Ohio State. Ohio State in general is often labeled 'Wide Receiver U' due to their excellent history at producing really excellent NFL receivers. So I don't really hold that against Tate much. Also, his 40-yard dash time was only 4.53 but there's plenty of receivers who didn't have a great 40 time who went on to have excellent NFL careers. Puka Nacua for example, ran a 4.57 40-yard dash.
Some other noteworthy positives regarding Tate is he apparently has great character and maturity, impressing many in his Pre-Draft interviews. He's seemingly pretty intelligent in general, excelling with good grades at Ohio State and winning awards for his academic achievements. These traits certainly matter, especially considering that Titans new offensive coordinator Brian Daboll is known to be a bit of a tough guy with an intense personality, but also to have a complex offensive system/scheme. Seems like potentially the perfect match with Tate and Daboll. You want a hard worker that doesn't bring drama especially at wide receiver. Tate also just turned 21 in January. So he has kind of all the time in the world to improve and grow. Tate has really good size at 6'2", 192 pounds. Perhaps he'll even put on more muscle in time, but that's still a pretty solid frame.
Tate is just a breath of fresh air to this fairly young Titans receiving group and will hopefully compliment the group and help everyone else produce.
Here's a general look at the Titans receivers before drafting Carnell Tate:
- Calvin Ridley is getting older and is maybe a bit injury prone, but still has some left in the tank I believe.
- Wan'Dale Robinson is a new signing by the Titans with great value and potential, likely will play a Julian Edelman type of role as he's a smaller receiver.
- Chimere Dike has tons of potential. He was a Pro Bowler AND First-Team All-Pro as a return specialist as a rookie last year and still caught 48 passes as well.
- Elic Ayomanor showed some good flashes in an up and down rookie season last year. I won't be shocked to see him greatly improve in year two and have a decent role on this team.
The Titans also have a promising tight end who was also a rookie last season in Gunnar Helm!
All in all, adding Carnell Tate to the mix was excellent, these receiving options are looking pretty decent all of a sudden!
Tate will hopefully help second-year QB Cam Ward shine and lead the Titans to greatness. Welcome to the squad Carnell!
Steve Smith was one of my favorite receivers while he played. I respect his opinion and I think he does a great job on YouTube! Here's him and his partner James Palmer discussing Tate prior to the Draft!
Src
The season can't come soon enough!