Carnell Tate watched the Tennessee Titans’ 43-36 overtime loss in Cincinnati with a shoulder injury that kept him out, and the No. 4 overall pick heads into the bye with a 66.5 grade that ranks fifth among 12 rookie receivers in PFF’s midseason first-round grades, behind Browns receiver KC Concepcion, who went 20 spots later.
Head coach Robert Saleh saw the absence coming. Tate missed practice all three days last week, and Saleh said Friday he would work the rookie out and push the envelope before making a call. “I think it’s a little complicated there, especially for a young guy, but we’ll see how he feels,” Saleh said, per the Titans’ official site. Tennessee ruled him out that afternoon.
Tennessee nearly won anyway. Cam Ward threw for a career-high 304 yards, and only a late sack that cost the Titans a winning field goal try kept them from a road upset.
Carnell Tate’s 66.5 grade ranks fifth among rookie receivers
Through seven games, Tate has 34 catches for 413 yards and a touchdown on 51 targets. His 67.0 receiving grade sits a half-point above his overall mark, and he has four drops with an average depth of target of 12.1 yards, according to his PFF page. Eighteen of his receptions have gone for first downs, per the team.
Concepcion, the 24th pick, owns the second-highest grade among rookie receivers at 69.5. Tate’s production still stands out in a Nashville context. His 344 yards through six games were a Titans-era rookie record, and we looked at how his first 51 targets compare with Ja’Marr Chase’s rookie start.
His last game before the injury was a quiet one. Tate played 56 snaps in the 27-24 loss to Cleveland in Week 7 and finished with a 59.3 receiving grade, according to PFF. He did not practice Wednesday with the shoulder issue and never got back on the field during the week.
What the bye means for Tate and Cam Ward
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Tennessee’s receiver rotation shifted without him. Chimere Dike played 63 snaps, earning a full-time role in Tate’s spot, and Elic Ayomanor played 50. Calvin Ridley, listed as questionable with a hip injury, logged 40 snaps and a 48.6 overall grade, according to PFF. Ward still graded out at 85.6.
The timing helps. The Titans are off in Week 9, which gives Tate two weeks before they host the Jacksonville Jaguars on Nov. 15 at Nissan Stadium. That game opens a stretch with two meetings against Jacksonville in three weeks and a trip to Dallas in between, per the Titans’ schedule.
The roster around Tate could also look different by then. The Nov. 10 trade deadline comes during the bye, and one pitch has the Titans cashing in on Tony Pollard while his value is high. Fewer veteran options would put even more of the offense on Ward and his rookie receiver.
For a rebuilding team, the second half of the season is about Cam Ward’s growth more than the standings, and Tate is the biggest piece of that plan. The bye was always going to be a checkpoint. Now it doubles as recovery time for the receiver Tennessee took fourth overall, and the bye-week fixes on offense start with getting him back.
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