Golden Tate promises he has loyalty to his hometown team. The Seattle Seahawks wide receiver is finishing up the final year of his current contract with the expectations of receiving a long-term deal with the team. However, the Seahawks have several players needing new money and Tate might be far down on the list of priorities. Now, he is stressing his willingness to do whatever it takes to stay in Seattle.
While speaking with a local Seattle radio station (via ESPN.com), Tate said he is willing to take less money in order to remain with Seattle over testing the free agent market.
"I probably shouldn't even say this right now, but I'm going to say it anyway just because I love Seattle," Tate said during an interview with Sports Radio 950 KJR in Seattle. "Honestly, I would rather take a little less to be happy and win ballgames than to take way more and go to a crappy city where the fans don't give a crap about the team, you win a game once a month -- something like that. I would much rather stay in the situation that I have now for a little less than to go and try to break the bank somewhere else."
Tate's value is high after he hauled n 64 catches for 898 yards in an offense that does not value the pass more than the rush. The wide receiver also functioned well as a punt returner, averaging 11.5 yards an attempt. At only 25, Tate could easy earn a solid deal as a free agent, but he would rather remain with the Super Bowl champs.
"At the same time, I don't want to be disrespected by any means," Tate said. "I want to be able to take care of myself and my family for the rest of my life at the same time. We'll see. That's what I have my agent for. I plan to have some conversations with Pete [Carroll, the Seahawks' coach] and the GM [John Schneider], and hopefully we can work something out."
The issue for Tate is the current Seattle wide receiving crew that is still under contract. The team is expected to have Percy Harvin healthy for the entire season in 2014. Doug Baldwin and Jermaine Kearse are also expected to return and be key contributors.
One player not expected back is Sidney Rice. With Seattle having to work out plenty of free agent issues, Rice could be a cap casualty. The injury-plagued receiver would free up $7.3 million in cap space. After appearing in just eight games this season, his $9.7 million salary would not be missed.
Releasing Rice could help Tate. The wide receiver is ready to do whatever it takes to remain with Seattle as long as the terms are fair.
