I think they're both good recieving tight ends, and both have a similar skill set. Both time the ball well in the air, both cause matchup issues, both fight well in traffic, both can jump..again, fairly good skill sets for a recieving tight end. But, I think that for a player to be complete at the position they need to play well in different areas of the game. Would I want to leave Gates alone with a Julian Peterson, AD or a Merriman on a blocking assignment? Hells naw. Would I want them running crack-backs, traps, and playing the h in the run game? Nope. I would much rather have Graham type-player in such a situation. Too much hype is given to players who go highlight reel stuff and not play a complete game. I think San Diego is a fantastic example of this.
Merriman and Phillps, while outstanding pass rushers, are undisciplined in playing the run, and are both severe liabilities in coverage and welker is going to make us giggle working out of the slot over these guys. Gates can catch a ball but couldn't block Troy Brown coming off the edge. Deihl can block the hell out of the zone but struggles in one on one pass block situations. McNeil is a very tallented pass blocker but plays too high to effectively move an upper-echelon defensive lineman. No doubt they are a very fun to watch. They excell physically, but they are very vanilla in what they do. If they excecute, they can be tough to beat. Like any personell-based team, you know what you are getting week in and week out. They're going to line up and play their brand of ball. Like any team that plays like that, an effective gameplan and the use of proper personell will trump the sexiest (no homo) roster.