Carnell Tate Instant Analysis With Tennessee Titans
Adam Pfeifer provides instant analysis after Carnell Tate was selected No. 4 in the NFL Draft by the Tennessee Titans.
Wide receiver. The Ohio State University.
Need I say more?
Carnell Tate joins a long and impressive list of successful NFL wideouts to come out of Columbus. Tate becomes the first receiver selected in this draft, joining Calvin Ridley and Wan'Dale Robinson in Tennessee. Getting sophomore signal-caller Cam Ward as much help as possible appears to be the priority for the Titans.
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Carnell Tate Fantasy Football Outlook With The Tennessee Titans
Well then.
The Titans weren’t really even on the radar as a potential landing spot for Tate, and among the possible suitors, this isn’t exactly the most fantasy-friendly selection. After giving Robinson a solid contract in free agency, Tennessee surprisingly kept Ridley, and now invested the fourth overall selection in Tate.
With Brian Daboll now calling the offense, the selection does make a bit more sense. Daboll has been an aggressive, vertical passing playcaller for much of his career. Tate is easily the best vertical route runner in this class, possessing tremendous fluidity and precision down the field. Go routes made up over 26% of his deployment this past season. And when the ball is in the air? Good luck. Tate hauled in over 80% of his contested targets last year, the highest rate in college football.
We’ll see how often the Titans utilize 11 personnel (three wide receivers) this season. Despite having one of the worst receiver rooms in football a year ago, Tennessee deployed 11 personnel 70% of the time, the highest rate in football. The Giants, meanwhile, were in the middle of the pack at 62%, though Daboll’s Bills offenses in 2020 and 2021 hovered around 70%.
Scouting Report For Carnell Tate
Tate is the WR1 in Dwain McFarland’s Rookie Super Model, and although his athleticism metrics don’t jump off the page, he makes up for it with precision and fluidity. He doesn’t waste movements with his routes, and when the ball is thrown his way, Tate is going to come down with it more often than not.
Some may point toward Tate’s good, not great, breakout season last year. And those same people may highlight the fact that he wasn’t the WR1 for the Buckeyes at any point of his collegiate career. But can we really fault him for playing alongside Marvin Harrison Jr., Emeka Egbuka and Jeremiah freaking Smith? He may not be the “generational” wide receiver prospect we’ve seen from the likes of Ja'Marr Chase. But Tate is a damn good football player.
For a more in-depth breakdown of Tate’s game, check out Ian Hartitz’s scouting report.
Should You Plan to Draft Carnell Tate?
No doubt about it, there were certainly better landing spots for immediate fantasy production for Tate. But Tate is a talented player who, at some point during the 2026 campaign, should emerge as the top target in this offense. I could easily see Tate being a player you rarely plug into fantasy lineups during the first half of the season, but becomes a viable starter following the infamous post-bye rookie bump.
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