The Philadelphia Eagles aren't working towards a long-term contract with Golden Tate -- after acquiring him for a third round pick mid-season.
That's according to the player's own Twitter account, where Tate made it obvious there isn't on-going talks with the team's front office. Replying to details of a free agency signing from ESPN's Adam Schefter, Tate tweeted: "Oh so you don't have to wait until March to sign extensions. Hmm interesting, good to know ✌".
It should come as no surprise that the Eagles aren't resigning a wide receiver that will fetch decent money on the open market. It is a surprise that they aren't even trying, however.
Through ten appearances with the Eagles, Tate averaged 33.4 yards a game with 52 touches. The 30-year-old's worth may be how he opened up a struggling offense that finished 5-1 in the final six regular season games -- after a 4-6 start. Tate's post-season touchdown grab on 4-and-2 against the Bears also caused the upset of the wild card round.
It seemed this trade would be evaluated on whether Executive VP of Football Operations Howie Roseman could keep the 30-year-old around, but that was always unlikely for a team tight on cap space. But Roseman said the trade was worth the price, per 247Sports:
"When we made the trade, we were 4-4. We were looking for a spark. We were looking for more firepower on offense... We wanted to make a playoff run. We wanted to make sure that we were putting our team in a position to do that. And we're always going to put our foot on the gas.
"In this case, feel very good about that. And you saw the contributions that he made in a big game. The stage isn't too big for Golden Tate."
As for Tate, the wide receiver made it clear he wanted to return to Philadelphia. Speaking to media after the season ending, he touched on his age and how he wants to stay with a competitive team:
"I would love to stay here. My years are limited. I don't have time to go somewhere that wants to rebuild. I need to go somewhere where they believe they can win now. That's what I want to do, but who knows. "
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