Golden Tate has caught passes from both Russell Wilson in Seattle and Matthew Stafford in Detroit, and he has a strongly held opinion of which one of them is better.
Tate told WDIV in Detroit that Stafford is the best quarterback he’s played with during his 10-year NFL career, which also saw him spend half a season in Philadelphia before signing with the Giants this year.
“To me, as of now, where I am today, I think Stafford’s been the best quarterback I’ve played with,” Tate said. “The guy can flat-out play. He’s tough, his attitude is amazing and he just wants to play ball. For me, I have nothing but praises for him. It’s almost unfair that he’s such a good player and doesn’t have playoffs or a ring to show for it. That kind of hurts my heart that I wasn’t able to help change that.”
So if Stafford is the best quarterback Tate played with, why did Tate earn a Super Bowl ring while playing with Wilson but never win a playoff game while playing with Stafford? Tate thinks Stafford could have a ring if he’d been drafted by a different franchise.
“I think over his career, if you put him in another organization, maybe things are different. I don’t know. Because I’ve played with some guys over my years that I’ve won playoff games with that I don’t think are as good,” Tate said.
That’s high praise for Stafford -- but it’s simultaneously a shot at Wilson, and at the Lions for not putting a better team around the quarterback they’ve had for a decade without winning a playoff game.