Golden Tate feature in the Seattle Times today

[QuahHawk]

Contrary to popular opinion, Tate is the most expandable WR we have. I think Harper could be the end of Tate as he is bigger and cheaper. I agree that Rice will need to restructure, but paying Tate high end #2 WR money ie Brian Hartline 5yr $30m or Danny Amendola 5yr $31mil seem a bit to high for me.

 

[ErikG803]

Tate's a monster (and my favorite player for the last 6 years), but I think it'd be a huge mistake to let him walk. I keep telling myself that he's one of PC/JS's guys since they drafted him in the 2nd and he hasn't disappointed, so I assume they'll figure something out

 

[NYCoug]

Popular opinion was that Kam Chancellor was the most expendable member of the secondary and the Seahawks just inked him to an extension. I'm expecting Golden to be a Seahawk for the foreseeable future. He's worked his ass off and is a good example of what can happen when a player puts in all the hard, "behind the scenes" work in the weight room, watching film, working on route running, etc. You also gotta imagine that the fact that he has a chance to play with a potentially legendary QB, one who just so happens to be his close friend, will probably play a factor in whether or not he takes his talents elsewhere in FA next year.

Remember when Golden was the incredibly sloppy route runner who couldn't stay in bounds on a sideline jump ball to save his life? He's a completely different guy now. Like the rest of you, I'm amazed at his production. Just another example of how great the Seahawks have been at coaching guys up. Hats off to Kippy Brown, Pete, and Golden of course for being firm believers that the hard work pays off.

 

[Hawknballs]

harvin and tate will make eachother so much more lethal that it won't make sense to let him walk after this season.

 

[CANHawk]

Contrary to popular opinion, Tate is the most expandable WR we have. I think Harper could be the end of Tate as he is bigger and cheaper. I agree that Rice will need to restructure, but paying Tate high end #2 WR money ie Brian Hartline 5yr $30m or Danny Amendola 5yr $31mil seem a bit to high for me.

The ignorance of this post is painful to watch. Tate is arguably our second best receiver behind Harvin, not the most expendable. SMH... Do you even watch Seahawks games......?

 

[Sarlacc83]

I used to be a big detractor of Tate's. His rookie season was worse than a lot of people acknowledged, he struggled with even some of the basic rules of the game. The strides he's made from there are amazing. I'm excited about him.

In the 23 years since I first became a Seahawks fan, I seriously cannot recall another Seahawks receiver who started lower and worked his way higher. I think the most shocking thing about it was how Tate just looked intellectually incapable during this first 1.5 seasons, and players like that pretty much never work things out (Seneca Wallace, T-Jack, etc). But Tate did, and now he's one of the players I trust the most.

Yeah, I'll freely admit that I expected Tate to get cut at some point. I thought he was a major disappointment. Needless to say, I am thrilled the coaches stuck by him, because he is paying big dividends.

 

[Smelly McUgly]

I was willing to stick with Tate, but only because of my own ignorance. I could tell that he was a bad route-runner, but definitely not to the extent that the guys here that watch tape and write about the game (and have played at a high level in some cases) knew. They saw his deficiencies and were able to compare him to other failed pro WRs because of their knowledge. All I had to go on was that it usually takes three years for a WR to come into his own unless he is a Julio Jones-type freak. So I figured that we wouldn't know until after three years, but that he would be better.

 

[CANHawk]

I was willing to stick with Tate, but only because of my own ignorance. I could tell that he was a bad route-runner, but definitely not to the extent that the guys here that watch tape and write about the game (and have played at a high level in some cases) knew. They saw his deficiencies and were able to compare him to other failed pro WRs because of their knowledge. All I had to go on was that it usually takes three years for a WR to come into his own unless he is a Julio Jones-type freak. So I figured that we wouldn't know until after three years, but that he would be better.

True, his route running has come miles since his first year (he was really bad). I was willing to stick with Tate though because you could just tell what he was capable of with the rock in his hands and you could tell that he was willing to do whatever it took to advance the ball. I don't remember the specifics at this point, but a game in his rookie year, he was about 3-5 yards away from the endzone and tried this crazy leaping jumping flying flipping move to get the ball over the goal line... he landed on his face at about the 1, but I knew at that point that there was no questioning A) his athletic ability and B) his desire. Now we're seeing that same determination work it's way into his route running; specifically the way he fights for the ball. He's boxing out and winning the jump balls the way BMW used to do.

GT is a special little dude and he's going to make a LOT of his detractors look really fricken stupid over the next few years. Especially now that he's cementing his status at Russell Wilson's favorite target.

 

[hawker84]

My favorite play of Tates last year was, I can't remember the team, but it was one of those sideline throws TJack used to try to make to MikeWill all the time. But Tate was blanketed and went up higher than the corner and snatched the ball turned around and got a TD. It was graceful to watch

Mine was the catch in Miami.

Mine was GB :devil:

 

[QuahHawk]

Contrary to popular opinion, Tate is the most expandable WR we have. I think Harper could be the end of Tate as he is bigger and cheaper. I agree that Rice will need to restructure, but paying Tate high end #2 WR money ie Brian Hartline 5yr $30m or Danny Amendola 5yr $31mil seem a bit to high for me.

The ignorance of this post is painful to watch. Tate is arguably our second best receiver behind Harvin, not the most expendable. SMH... Do you even watch Seahawks games......?

Man I watched every game, I flew from Texas for the GB and STL game.

Rice is way more valuable than Tate is, and now that we have Harvin the #2 WR on this team is not a critical position. Keeping Tate would be great but I'd only do it if we can get a James Jones type deal, 3year $9m. Tate made some amazing plays but this offense does not go through him and plugging in Baldwin or Harper and I doubt our offense skips a beat. If Rice, Miller, or Harvin go down we would feel the pain. Rice is very undervalued as he has the prototypical size and speed of a #1 and draws the teams best CB and sometimes double coverage. Tate rearely if ever will have to be accounted for. I love what he does but no team is going to worry about him. If Harper adapts quickly his 6'0 230lbs frame would be a much better option for our Split end spot and with his size he could potentially be a much more adept blocker in the run game.

 

[SmokinHawk]

Contrary to popular opinion, Tate is the most expandable WR we have. I think Harper could be the end of Tate as he is bigger and cheaper. I agree that Rice will need to restructure, but paying Tate high end #2 WR money ie Brian Hartline 5yr $30m or Danny Amendola 5yr $31mil seem a bit to high for me.

The ignorance of this post is painful to watch. Tate is arguably our second best receiver behind Harvin, not the most expendable. SMH... Do you even watch Seahawks games......?

No shit... Tate is a bigtime threat for yards after the catch. He also seems to have a nose for the endzone. Definitely not easily replaceable.

 

[QuahHawk]

Popular opinion was that Kam Chancellor was the most expendable member of the secondary and the Seahawks just inked him to an extension. I'm expecting Golden to be a Seahawk for the foreseeable future. He's worked his ass off and is a good example of what can happen when a player puts in all the hard, "behind the scenes" work in the weight room, watching film, working on route running, etc. You also gotta imagine that the fact that he has a chance to play with a potentially legendary QB, one who just so happens to be his close friend, will probably play a factor in whether or not he takes his talents elsewhere in FA next year.

Remember when Golden was the incredibly sloppy route runner who couldn't stay in bounds on a sideline jump ball to save his life? He's a completely different guy now. Like the rest of you, I'm amazed at his production. Just another example of how great the Seahawks have been at coaching guys up. Hats off to Kippy Brown, Pete, and Golden of course for being firm believers that the hard work pays off.

I was in the Kam is likely to go bandwagon. I though him and BB could be replaced. I wanted to keep him but after seeing what Goldson got I figured he'd get even more and we had to keep Earl and Sherm over Kam. Now it comes out in the media that he is the leader of that pack and I never really got that feel before, If I had known he was the leader it probably would have changed my opinion. Once we resigned him I was super happy because we got him for a great value and I think it does prove we want to keep all our guys together but I also wonder if PC & JS know something we don't. What if they know ET or Sherm will want to test the market and move on for the biggest deal they can get? I hope they want to stick around and agree to a franchise friendly deal but I wouldn't blame them it they jump ship to Washington, Dallas, or some other team willing to pay them so crazy amount of $$$$. Getting Kam locked up could help keep the whole group around, or it could just be part of keeping as many of them as we can afford around.

 

[CANHawk]

Wen... I don't get why you need to see it as an either/or when it can totally be a both/and. JS is a champ at structuring the GROUP's contracts in such a way that the big cap hits don't all come at the same time. Some will get their payday up front, others will get theirs deferred while still others will be talked into hometown discounts. Yes people (likely popular people) will be cap casualties, but not likely the 24 year old guy who's poised for a breakout year.

Having 4 homerun threats at WR PLUS Zack Miller PLUS a stable of feature caliber RB's is so freaking awesome I Dont have words for it; no need to part it out just now for sake of saving a few bucks. We'll need to be ruthless in... What is it, 4 years? when Russ and Sherm come due, but we can afford to pay the Golden Tate's of the world.

 

[QuahHawk]

We can afford Tate to a point, but like I said If we have Baldwin and Harper making a total of $1.5 mil combined and Tate is asking for a salary int he $6+ per year range I don't see the value. I think he could get a big contract and that's great but to me spending big on Tate and cutting Rice would be like resigning Shaun Alexander and letting Hutch walk.

Tate has his place on this roster and I love what he brings, he is an exciting player, just not irreplaceable for a specific salary. I don't think Baldwin is as good as him but at the salary Tate might be asking for Baldwin would be a much better value.

 

[loafoftatupu]

The future of this roster is not even on my radar. I am personally just ready to enjoy the time that they are together. The bridge will be crossed in time, but for now, the Seahawks have an extremely underrated WR group. Tate is simply amazing after the catch and still so young. He is going to really benefit from Harvin being here. Having two guys like that, combined with guys who get after the ball like Rice and Baldy is lethal.

Wilson found Tate to be extremely useful, a fantastic finisher. He pulled off several of those catches around the 10 and wormed his way in with determination. How are defenses going to stop that with two guys that string after the catch? There will be red zone plays that feature 2 WRs short, with Miller and Rice in the end zone. Oh yeah... Any variety of RB next to Wilson just complicates the equation.

This is something that no other team in the NFL carries, not a single one. Atlanta is close, but they don't have a single Harvin/Tate WR on their roster.

Yeah, Tate is going to have a good time this year.

 

[Bigpumpkin]

WOW! Folks are really getting passionate about this thread! I can see why ""fan" is short for "fanatic". There are times when "reason" just doesn't get very far.

Now...I really doubt that JS will ask Russell Wilson what numbers he should put down on Golden's new contract as friendship in the NFL just doesn't mean "squat" come contract time. JS and Pete will just have to squeeze those numbers to get under the "cap", because I just don't see Russell asking for a trade if his friend doesn't get what he wants.

 

[CANHawk]

WOW! Folks are really getting passionate about this thread! I can see why ""fan" is short for "fanatic". There are times when "reason" just doesn't get very far.

Now...I really doubt that JS will ask Russell Wilson what numbers he should put down on Golden's new contract as friendship in the NFL just doesn't mean "squat" come contract time. JS and Pete will just have to squeeze those numbers to get under the "cap", because I just don't see Russell asking for a trade if his friend doesn't get what he wants.

True... but you also have to respect the fact that there is such a thing a chemestry between a quarterback and a reciever and there is some serious chemestry starting to develop between Golden and Russell. THAT has value.

Wen's freaking out like Tate is going to be able to command $10m/per after this season when he becomes a FA. I reeeeeealy don't see that happening. Not in this offense with all these different pieces. The big contracts tend to go to the guys who put up really big numbers, and with RW dishing the rock out to Tate AND 4 legitimate pro bowl caliber players (Harvin, Rice, Miller and Lynch) AND Baldwin & Harper AND Luke Willson, Christin Michel & Bobby Turbo, Tate isn't going to be able to put up those kind of numbers that get those stupid big contracts.

I expect GT to put up decent numbers as the starting split end (somewhere around 50 for 700 or something like that) and will likely command somewhere around a $4m/yr contract. That is a totally manageable number and given the diversity and production he brings, a totally worthwhile investment IMO.

 

[Smelly McUgly]

Honestly, after reading the "Richard Sherman is the most underpaid player in the NFL" article and then coming back to this one, I have no idea how Schneider is going to keep all these guys or if it is even possible, even if the cap goes up in the next couple of years. The amount of young talent on their first contracts is pretty staggering when one thinks about it. The team is so stacked that they used all their draft picks on guys that are not starting unless there is injury. Ridiculous.

 

[CANHawk]

Honestly, after reading the "Richard Sherman is the most underpaid player in the NFL" article and then coming back to this one, I have no idea how Schneider is going to keep all these guys or if it is even possible, even if the cap goes up in the next couple of years. The amount of young talent on their first contracts is pretty staggering when one thinks about it. The team is so stacked that they used all their draft picks on guys that are not starting unless there is injury. Ridiculous.

True, we're going to have some big contracts to sign, but it's looking like it's been set up so that some of the big contracts we already have will be coming off the books with some of the older guys (i'm thinking Red Bryant, Chris Clemons, Brandon Mebane, Marshawn Lynch, Zack Miller et al), so there should be room to re-up a lot of the young core guys once we replace the afore mentioned with young cheap draftees.

Yeah, we'll probably lose some popular guys along the way (like a Mike Rob or Sidney Rice, P&J have already said as much, but the core will survive intact.

 

[mikeak]

I used to be a big detractor of Tate's. His rookie season was worse than a lot of people acknowledged, he struggled with even some of the basic rules of the game. The strides he's made from there are amazing. I'm excited about him.

In the 23 years since I first became a Seahawks fan, I seriously cannot recall another Seahawks receiver who started lower and worked his way higher. I think the most shocking thing about it was how Tate just looked intellectually incapable during this first 1.5 seasons, and players like that pretty much never work things out (Seneca Wallace, T-Jack, etc). But Tate did, and now he's one of the players I trust the most.

Remember Koren Robinson's first season vs second season? Dramatic improvement............ Hope Tate continues upwards - I know they have very different personalities

and stats:
Team G GS Rec Yds Avg Lng TD 20+ 40+ 1st
2001 Seattle Seahawks 16 13 39 536 13.7 42 1 8 2 25
2002 Seattle Seahawks 16 16 78 1,240 15.9 83 5 19 4 58