Tate was the biggest signing of the offensive side of the ball for the Browns,but had struggled over the last month with the zenith being a -9 yards on two carries and a chop block penalty against his former team in the Houston Texans.
Tate was off to a strong start in the opener against Pittsburgh as he ran for 41 yards on six carries before suffering an injury that would sideline him for a month.
Tate's return saw his only 100 yard game as a Brown as he ran for 124 yards in the Browns comeback win over Tennessee.
The highlights were slim after that game in Nashville as only his 78 yards and two touchdowns in the win over Pittsburgh would ever exceed the measly total of 36 yards thereafter.
I've written that much of the problem with Ben Tate is that he was having trouble being able to turn the corner on sweeps and pitches.
I still think that Tate can be an effective runner,but I think he will need to be given runs between the tackles to loosen the defense for those occasional outside runs and he will work best as the main back to wear down the defense.
Tate splitting time with Isaiah Crowell and Terrence West was not going to give that opportunity to Tate,so this release might be the best thing for all parties involved.
The Browns can be rid of a player that clearly was becoming a malcontent,Crowell and West will each get more carries with the football and Tate is rumored to be on his way to the Colts,who need a back with the season ending injury to Ahmad Bradshaw on Sunday.
Cleveland also re-signed former Texans linebacker Zac Liles to a contract to address depth after the losses of Jabaal Sheard and Karlos Dansby.
Liles had been in training camp with Cleveland before being released....
No comments:
Post a Comment