Golden Tate Glitters in Seahawks Debut; Could He Be an Elite NFL Running Back?

After getting left on the inactive list in week one and watching Seahawk fumbles and interceptions from the bench against Denver, Golden Tate was determined to make a difference. Much of the game at Mile High was a comedy of errors, with a fumble on the opening punt that would make anyone question the sanity of putting a rookie back to catch punts (on the road no less). Turnovers, after all are the killer on the road as every football media personality loves to repeat. Tate blew those notions out of the water in his first return which dazzled spectators with speed, balance and broken tackles. Turns out, you just need the right rookie back there. What impresses most about Tate is his lower body balance and strength. His quickness should not be underestimated. This guy can break a linebackers ankle inside of a phone booth. He is also very difficult to bring down. Considering how thin the running situation is in Seattle, Golden has a body, vision, and footwork that could also make for an elite running back in the NFL. The only reason he is not running between the tackles is the softness and sureness of his catching mitts.

Lets take a look at his combine numbers:

Tate: 5 feet 10 inches, 200 pounds /  40 Yard Dash: 4.4 sec

These attributes are almost identical to Baltimore star running back Ray Rice. He is also 5 foot 9 and around 200 pounds with similar (a bit slower than Tate) 4.4 speed. We all have seen how well a small back with good vision, balance and quickness can do in this league.

Breakaway speed is not Tate's greatest asset, evidenced by his inability to run away from defenders in his first long return. He did not test his speed to the outside instead opting to out-quick defenders back inside multiple times. His hands and body control in the air make up for anything he lacks and when he jumps for a ball the Steve Smith comparisons seem accurate. Smith is the gold standard for a receivers of small stature with large cajones. Smith can block and battle with the best of them. Tate needs to channel Smith's mean streak and play angry. Golden must play with that chip, marked on the shoulder of every first round talent picked too late. Seattle has a need at both running back and receiver, but it looks like Tate is just too good at making plays on balls that are in the air. Look for Pete Carroll to get Tate involved in the coming weeks on short screen passes, end arounds and reverses. This guy is too good with the ball in his hands not to get a few designed plays a game.

Golden Tate - moves so dirty yet still so shiny.