The Detroit Lions and Philadelphia Eagles have agreed to a big deal ahead of the NFL Trade Deadline to send Golden Tate to Philly.
Not to be outdone by the Houston Texans and Denver Broncos, the Detroit Lions and Philadelphia Eagles have also agreed to a big trade deadline deal involving a wide receiver. This one will see the defending Super Bowl champions add Golden Tate as another weapon for Carson Wentz and the Eagles offense.
Tate had been the subject of trade rumors going back to an NFL Network report on Monday. That report suggested a fourth-round pick could be what it took to get the Lions to let go of Tate, but in the end it is a pick in the third round that gets the deal done.
First word of the trade popped up on Twitter from Tate himself.
It’s been real DETROIT! I’ll love ya forever. Philly Philly let’s get it!!
— Golden Tate (@ShowtimeTate) October 30, 2018
ESPN’s Adam Schefter was right behind Tate with the details that the Eagles are sending the Lions a third-round pick in exchange for the productive veteran receiver.
Detroit is trading WR Golden Tate to the Philadelphia Eagles for a third-round pick, per source.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) October 30, 2018
Tate is in the final year of his contract, so the Eagles may only be getting Tate for half of a season but he remains on of the most productive receivers in the league. Despite having a very good trio of receivers, Tate was the Lions’ leader in reception and receiving yards while being Matthew Stafford‘s most frequent target.
It will be interesting to see if this is truly the end of Tate’s Lions career. He had expressed some optimism in reaching an extension with the Lions in a piece by Dave Birkett in the Detroit Free Press:
"But Tate said Monday he’s still optimistic he can get a long-term deal done to stay in Detroit and the two sides have moved “closer” to an extension since the start of the season."
Perhaps a return to Detroit in free agency is a possisbilty. Regardless, the Lions obviously felt the price was enough to do without Tate for the remainder of the season. At 3-4, they are very much in the thick of the NFC North race.
Just a week ago, they made a deal to acquire defensive tackle Damon Harrison in a move that very much looked like they would be gearing up for a push towards the playoffs. This moves seems counter to that, but the Lions have capable options remaining.