The Detroit Lions surprised everyone when they traded away Golden Tate, and Matt Patricia said the decision had to do with the “big picture”. Tate was arguably the team's best offensive weapon. The 3-4 Lions are still very much in the hunt for the NFC North title. The Chicago Bears and Minnesota Vikings are at the top of the division with four wins each, and the season is only halfway through. Patricia feels like the Lions got a good deal on Tate that will make the team better down the road.
“When we evaluate everything we do as a franchise, we think there is certain value we can get at times during the season that will help us long term,” Patricia told MLive.com. “And we obviously have faith and confidence in the people that are on this team right now. So we put all that into play and try to make sure we're making the best decision we can in that moment, and it's hard — it's very difficult — when you're in that one-game-at-a-time mind set.”
The Philadelphia Eagles gave up a third-round pic for Golden Tate, which is a steep price to pay for half a season. If they show him they're a good fit, they could have a good shot at convincing him to stay for a few more years. Matt Patricia is in his first season as a head coach, and he wants to create something special in Detroit.
“And that's where we are from the standpoint, it's week to week for us and that's good, but there's also a big picture here that we keep an eye on as we move forward, and that's something we have to consider when we make all these decisions — whether it's during the season, during the offseason, free agency, draft, whatever it is. Those are difficult decisions whenever they come,” Patricia continued.
The Lions just want to focus on their upcoming divisional matchup with the Vikings this week. It'll likely be a few years before it's evident whether or not trading Tate was the right move for the future, but you never know who they could find in the 2019 NFL Draft.
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