Auden Tate is Much Better Than Most People Think

[*TheLeonardLeap*]

(01-21-2020, 09:11 PM)Wes Mantooth Wrote: Tate missed the entirety of 4 games and significant parts of 3 others. If you project out these stats over a 16 game season (adding a conservative 5 games of missed production) they look like this... 54 catches, 815 yards.

I think Tate can be an okay #3, or a good #4. There's a spot for him on that roster.

That said, didn't we already learn our lesson with this "projected over 16 games" practice and Mohamed Sanu/Bernard Scott/Carlos Dunlap/Carl Lawson/many more?

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Sanu his rookie year had 4 TDs in a 3 game stretch to end the season and everyone was all fired up about how that'd translate into an unstoppable TD monster in a 16 game season. He started 14 games the next year and got 2 TD.

Bernard Scott had 4.9 YPC on 61 carries in 2010 and people thought "how great would it be if he got more carries?"... and then he got 112 the next year at 3.4 YPC.

Carlos Dunlap had 9.5 sacks his rookie year in very limited playing time and everyone was talking about how many sacks he'd get with more opportunity. Turns out he got more opportunity yet didn't match or beat his 9.5 sack season until 5 years later, and it still remains the 2nd most sacks he's had in a year.

You can pretty much copy-paste Dunlap's bit and just change the name to Lawson. 8.5 sacks in his rookie season in very limited playing time, 6 sacks in the 2 years since.

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Anquan Boldin was a 2nd round pick despite his 40 time, and caught nearly 1,400 yards his rookie season with 3 TDs of 50+ yards. I would hardly put his name in the same sentence as Auden Tate. 16 game projection or not.

He'll go up and get a ball but he won't get separation, he won't make guys miss, and he won't take it to the house. I don't see him being anything more than a #3 on a bad team or a #4 on a good team.