Tate had "minor surgery" to his knee after he went on I.R. Clearly it wasn't an ACL tear. His knee is probably not toast and he is/will be fully participating in the offseason program. He has a lot of potential to make an impact this year, and it isn't blindly optimistic to think that a talented second year wide receiver participating in all offseason camps could make huge strides. Of course the team shouldn't operate assuming he'll be the answer at the position, but let's not relegate him to gameday inactive just yet (especially because he has the potential to be an ace return man).
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I have no idea what Tate did after he went on IR, but I'd feel a lot more comfortable with the situation if I knew Tate's attitude/work ethic was the same as McKenzie's (preparing with the team in meetings/film room for each upcoming game exactly the same as if he was going to be starting that Sunday). Maybe Tate did this. As we painfully saw last year, our offense doesn't need WRs who are learning on the fly or who struggle getting on the same page with Brady.
My point is that the chances of a rookie WR coming in and lining up opposite Moss are next to zero. We HAVE to find #2 guy who is a) capable of "getting it," b) is going to work his a** off to get there, AND c)who is physically a legitimate threat in the passing game. If Patten still possesses the speed, etc. that c) requires, then he may be the starter in Sept.
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