Auden Tate building on from last year

[Whatever]

(08-27-2020, 02:42 PM)Au165 Wrote: We have done this a bunch, if you look at his advanced analytics he was thrown far lower quality passes than most the guys on the team and compared to the league as a whole. That usually gets someone to respond he must be a poor route runner, which isn't true when you turn on the tape. To me it comes down to the routes he was asked to run were usually lower percentage throws (no screens, drags, etc) but may have also been Andy's thought process of making him "go get it" because he can and usually those throws are safer in terms of interceptions if they are not caught. When you actually watch all of his targets the ball is just never put on him or in front, it is really odd to see.

Before we get there I guess I'll add the stats:

Player            Target Quality Rating  League Rank
Auden Tate               4.4                     97
Tyler Boyd                5.2                     62
John Ross                 7.3                      8

Player         Catchable Target Rate  League Rank
Auden Tate            65.4%                   100
Tyler Boyd             76.9%                    58
John Ross              78.6%                    44

This is a conversation I have gone round and round on probably 3 or 4 times here. I usually end up posting a video clip of all his targets in the Ravens game that showed him having to leave his feet on almost every throw because the ball was placed so god awfully. I then usually follow that up with Buffalo where at least one interception was the result of an absolutely horribly placed ball to him.

He is not going to get screens and drag routes because those are designed to get the ball to YAC threats in space.  It's not really fair to say that the others have their stats inflated by running certain routes when Tate doesn't have the skill set to be a viable option on those routes.  That's probably my biggest issue with him as a player.  He has a very narrow skill set as a receiving option.

The other issue with that argument is that Tate gets worse separation than Boyd and Ross, so defenders are going to affect the throw to him more.  Ross has more Targeted Air Yards than either by a wide margin, but has a higher target quality because he can separate quicker and create easier throws despite operating further upfield.  I know you're dismissive of separation, but there appears to be a correlation there.

He's also not a good route runner.  In the Baltimore game you're referring to, he makes a diving catch on an out route where he starts his break just inside the 10 and makes the catch near the 6.  You can't round your route off 3-1/2 yards up field.  I give him props for making the grab, but that's an example of a "poor throw" he created by running a bad route.  Also in that Baltimore game, he had two back shoulder throws he jumped for.  That's common among big receivers with bad footwork.  They jump and rotate their bodies in the air to make the grab because they don't have good enough footwork to get around for it.  Honestly, if you look through most of Tate's highlights, most of them are just back shoulder throws he's jumping to get his body around for.

He's not a guy you want out there every down because he has a limited skill set and a lot of routes that he's simply ineffective running, so it allows the defense to cheat.  He's a good possession 4th WR.  He could hypothetically be a good red zone threat, but he has yet to show it.