Eagles News: Philadelphia earns high grades for Golden Tate trade

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Grades for every NFL trade at the 2018 deadline - SB Nation
Philadelphia’s been stuck in post-Super Bowl rut, but at 4-4 the Eagles remain in the thick of the NFC East hunt. They can thank Carson Wentz for that; the third-year quarterback has picked up where his 2017 season left off, firmly establishing him as a legitimate MVP candidate in the process. He’s thrown for 13 touchdowns and just two interceptions in six games, racking up 298 yards per contest in the process. He’s done all that with an underwhelming receiving corps, too. Re-signing Jordan Matthews helped bolster that group, but Nelson Agholor has been disappointing after a breakout 2017 and Alshon Jeffery has dealt with injuries to start his 2018. The Eagles needed help to make a push toward division-leading Washington, and Tate fits the bill. Grade: A-

Six things to know about new Eagles WR Golden Tate - BGN
He will probably go down as one of the better receivers in Detroit Lions history. Outside of Stafford, he was the most important player on our offense post-Megatron. In only 4 years and some change he became our 7th all-time leading receiver. He was also the crux of our entire offenses short passing game. It would not be a stretch to say that he is one of the top 15 Lions of all time.

The Kist & Solak Show #35: Golden Tate Emergency Show! - BGN Radio
Michael Kist and Benjamin Solak give their reaction to the Eagles acquiring Golden Tate from the Detroit Lions as the trade deadline quickly approaches! Short term and long term impact plus an overview and detailed look at who the Eagles got in the trade!

Eagles strike Gold(en), trade third-round pick for Lions WR Tate - PFF
His calling card has been his shiftiness in the open field and yards-after-catch ability. Since 2014, no wide receiver has more yards after the catch than Tate with 2,790 yards. It isn’t particularly close either, as the next closest player is Antonio Brown with 400 fewer yards after the catch on 102 more receptions. During that period, over half of Tate’s yardage has come after the catch. 49 wide receivers have received at last 300 regular-season targets since 2014; Tate is one of only three, along with Randall Cobb and Jarvis Landry, who has more yards after the catch than yards before the catch. His ability to create extra yardage in the open field is second to none. Part of what makes Tate so special after the catch is his ability to make potential tacklers miss. Who is the leader in avoided tackles by wide receivers since 2014? No surprises – it’s Golden Tate by a healthy margin. Tate has made 108 potential tacklers miss in the last four-plus seasons. Not only is that the most by any wide receiver, but it is over 25 more than the next closest player.

Analysis of the NFC East moves at (or near) the trade deadline - PhillyVoice
In reading up on the Packer media’s view of the trade, the consensus was that Ha Ha Clinton-Dix hadn’t played well this season, despite a high rating from Pro Football Focus. The following is from Tom Silverstein of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: “Clinton-Dix hadn’t played well all season, missing way too many tackles, abandoning the middle too often in the red zone and giving up too many completions in coverage. He did have four turnover plays, including an important forced fumble in the San Francisco victory, but his good did not outweigh his bad.”

Talk About The Eagles - Iggles Blitz
Now you add Tate. He has been highly productive in recent years. He caught more than 90 passes in each year from 2014 to 2017. He’s on pace to get there again this year. Tate was more of a vertical threat when he played in Seattle. He has the skills to play inside or outside. He can stretch the field or move the chains. Tate can be a weapon on end arounds, jet sweeps or even playing out of the backfield. He gives the coaches another weapon to work with. He gives Carson Wentz another player to get the ball to. The NFL is all about offense these days. The Eagles are 18th in yards and 21st in points. They must get better on offense. We saw in 2016 that Carson Wentz can only do so much when he doesn’t have weapons. Throwing the ball to Paul Turner and Dorial Green-Beckham isn’t going to get it done.

Golden Tate Is Exactly What the Eagles Need for Another Super Bowl Run - The Ringer
Fine, that’s premature, but the defending champs just added one of the most talented receivers in football. Philly has a downfield threat in Alshon Jeffery, a reliable underneath option in Nelson Agholor, and seam shredders in Zach Ertz and Dallas Goedert, but the team has lacked speed on the outside since losing receiver Torrey Smith to free agency (believe it or not, Smith had nine targets in the Eagles’ Super Bowl win, the same number as Ertz). Enter Tate, who excels at circus catches and even more circus-y runs after the catch and will provide the type of receiving option the Eagles were missing the first half of the season. Tate will be a free agent after this season, and, while the Eagles could look to extend him midseason like they did with Jeffery in 2017, it’s more likely that this is a rental deal for a repeat.

Fantasy winners and losers from Golden Tate trade - ESPN
Agholor is the biggest faller in terms of fantasy value so far today. Agholor enjoyed a breakout 2017 season after moving to the slot, but the acquisition of Tate means the fourth-year receiver’s target share (20 percent) will take a severe hit. Expect it to be closer to the 12-15 percent range the rest of the way. Agholor is worth no more than a bench spot. Speaking of target shares, Jeffery sits at 23 percent and Zach Ertz at a career-high 28 percent this season. Expect both to drop closer to where they were in 2017 (Jeffery at 21 percent, Ertz 23 percent). Both will remain focal points of the Eagles’ offense, so continue to view Jeffery as a WR2 and Ertz as a top-end TE1. Wentz is playing outstanding football but has been limited to fringe QB1 fantasy production. This trade gives him a slight boost on a week-to-week basis.

Quick thoughts on the Golden Tate trade: The Lions done messed up - Pride of Detroit
While I’m being honest, it’s hard to get over the emotional loss here. Tate has been a joy to watch on the field, and he’s been one of the most entertaining off it. He’s one of the few members of the locker room that will stand by and talk openly for all 45 minutes of the media session. No bullshit. No coach-speak. He’ll say what’s on his mind and let you sit with it. Even if I wasn’t writing a story about him, I’d often stand there next to him just to hear someone speak candidly for once.

Golden Tate trade gives Carson Wentz another valuable third-down weapon - Daily News
But in their first eight games this year, the Eagles have been inconsistent on third down. They’re 13th in third-down efficiency (41.3 percent). They have a 51.7 third-down success rate in their four wins, but 29.4 in their four losses. They converted just two of nine third-down opportunities in their Week 5 loss to the Vikings and only three of 12 against the Panthers two weeks ago. Wentz’s 99.1 third-down passer rating is 24 points lower than last year. Enter Tate. He is tied for sixth in the league in third-down receptions this season with 15. No one on the Eagles currently has more than 10. In his previous four seasons with the Lions, Tate averaged 27.2 third-down receptions.

Doug Pederson On WR Golden Tate: ‘I Can’t Wait To Get Him In Here’ - PE.com
“He can play inside and outside, all over really,” Pederson said. “He’s got that position versatility that you like – he can play the slot, he can play outside. Really, with all of our guys, being able to move them around is beneficial for us. It’s a great boost for the offense. Hopefully, Golden will help us increase our production as far as point total. We’re doing some great things as far as pushing the ball down the field, we’ve made improvement there, and this gives us a chance to get a few more of those.”

2018 NFL rookie rankings: Derwin James tops list at midseason - NFL.com
22) Dallas Goedert — Goedert’s production has been streaky, but he’s made some splash plays for the Eagles’ offense this fall. I’d look for him to climb up this list in the second half of the season.

5 biggest pleasant surprises for Eagles in 1st half - NBCSP
The rookie from Pittsburgh began the season as a role player and didn’t even get a single defensive snap through three weeks, but now he looks like the savior of the defense. Rodney McLeod is out for the season and after Corey Graham struggled to replace him, Avonte Maddox has become a starting safety and has been really impressive. Remember, Maddox played outside corner in college and has already learned slot corner and safety in the NFL. He might be too small to be a long-term safety, but it might be time to start thinking about it.

Eagles, Jags are latest examples of just how hard it is to maintain the kind of success the Patriots have year after year - The Athletic
The Jags and Birds each made their respective conference championship games a year ago, with the Jags holding a double-digit lead in the fourth quarter against New England before crumbling late and the Eagles of course going on to defeat the Pats to win Super Bowl 52. As such, both teams have huge expectations and Super Bowl aspirations this year. Yet, here they were across the pond in Week 8, both desperate to get a win just to get to the .500-mark midway through the season. Watching that game and thinking about the struggles both those teams have had so far this season made me think about everything the Patriots have to overcome to stockpile 12+ wins and AFC Championship game appearances, at a minimum, year after year.

TRADE! Packers trade Ha Ha Clinton-Dix to the Redskins for a 4th round pick - Hogs Haven
The Packers have traded safety Ha Ha Clinton-Dix to the Redskins! The Redskins make a move with about 14 minutes to spare before today’s 4 pm deadline. Washington collects another former Alabama defender. Clinton-Dix will be paired for D.J. Swearinger Sr. who has been playing out of his mind this season. The Redskins defense gets better as both the Eagles and Cowboys have made trades to acquire WRs.

Patriots place cornerback Eric Rowe on injured reserve - Pats Pulpit
Like Dawson, Rowe could theoretically return off injured reserve later during the season. However, this appears to be unlikely as running back Rex Burkhead seems to be the frontrunner to receive the second and final return designation. Consequently, Rowe’s season and potentially his tenure in New England – he is an unrestricted free agent next offseason – may have found its end today.

Raiders CB Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie announces his retirement - Silver And Black Pride
Rodgers-Cromartie looked very good at times this season for the Raiders. He appeared in all 7 of their games, starting one game. But last week he didn’t see a snap on defense, playing only on special teams. At the age of 32, and on a team that is going nowhere, this decision seems like a logical one.

Matt Barkley visiting Bills - PFT
With the Bills down to one healthy quarterback, Matt Barkley will visit Buffalo on Wednesday, Peter Schrager of NFL Media reports. Barkley has remained a free agent since the Bengals cut him off injured reserve with a settlement Sept. 12. He has played 11 games, with six starts since the Eagles made him a fourth-round pick in 2013. Barkley also has spent time with the Bears, Cardinals and 49ers.

Giants’ backup quarterback Kyle Lauletta arrested for traffic incident - Big Blue View
New York Giants backup quarterback Kyle Lauletta was arrested en route to practice Tuesday morning and charged with a series of crimes, some traffic-related and some related to his apparent behavior once he was stopped by Weehawken police. Charges against Lauletta include eluding police, a third-degree crime, obstructing administration of law and resisting arrest. Lauletta also faces traffic charges including reckless driving. Weehawken police indicated this was the second straight day in which Lauletta had been involved in an incident near the approach to Route 495.

Week 8 DVOA Ratings - Football Outsiders
The Kansas City Chiefs and Los Angeles Rams still are on top of our DVOA ratings, but this week the Chiefs pass the Rams as our new Super Bowl favorite. The reasons? Schedule strength, fumble recovery luck, and the presence of the best first-year starting quarterback in NFL history.

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