NFL Offseason Check-in: Can Carnell Tate Be Titans’ WR1 After Being Ohio State’s WR2?

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Carnell Tate spent his first two Titans practices largely out of sight. After a team stretch during rookie minicamp last week, the No. 4 overall pick — like the rest of Tennessee’s 2026 draft selections— worked with the strength and conditioning staff. But there will come a time when the receiver will be on the field, running routes and catching passes from quarterback Cam Ward, last year’s No. 1 overall pick. Tate’s draft slot makes the expectation clear: Eventually, he needs to be a WR1-caliber player. He’s pivotal to Ward’s development and to the Titans’ offense. Tate doesn’t sound overwhelmed by that expectation. “I just go out there and play football,” he told reporters on Friday. “The ball will find you. You just go out there and make the best of your opportunities, like I’ve always done.” But not as a WR1. It’s well documented: In Ohio State’s (always) loaded wide receiver room, Tate was WR2 behind Jeremiah Smith last season. As a sophomore in 2024, Tate was the third option behind Smith and Emeka Egbuka, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ first-round pick last year. That means that at the highest level of football, Tate will need to grow into something he hasn’t been. “He’s got to compete; he has got to prove that he belongs,” new Titans head coach Robert Saleh said Friday. “He’s got to [show] that he deserves the ball, and it’s going to start day one once he gets here.” As a rookie, Ward never had a go-to target in Tennessee’s abysmal offense, which ranked third-worst in the NFL in scoring (16.7 points per game). Titans receivers were plagued by dropped passes and issues creating separation. Former All-Pro Calvin Ridley was a disappointment in 2025, missing 10 games due to injury and averaging just 43.3 receiving yards per contest when he was on the field. The Titans’ leading pass-catcher was tight end Chig Okonkwo (560 receiving yards), who signed with the Washington Commanders in free agency. Tennessee added free-agent Wan’Dale Robinson, who was a 1,000-yard receiver last season for the Giants. Robinson spent the first three-plus years of his NFL career playing under Brian Daboll, the former New York head coach and now the Titans’ offensive coordinator. Second-year pros Chimere Dike — an All-Pro returner as a rookie — and Elic Ayomanor are ascending players. But Tate is the high-end, young talent the team desperately needs at the position. In the Titans’ eyes, he’s a complete wide receiver. The 6-foot-2, 192-pound Tate is a big target with contested-catch ability. He has great tracking skills and the catch radius to match. He’s an efficient route-runner and a willing blocker. What Tate lacks as a burner (4.53-second 40-yard dash) he makes up for in play speed. He’s “elusive and sudden” off the line of scrimmage, as Titans general manager Mike Borgonzi puts it, and can separate from defensive backs at the top of his routes. With Tate’s presence, Ward may be able to let it fly more downfield. Among the 33 qualified quarterbacks last season, he ranked 28th in deep passing rate (8.1%), according to Next Gen Stats. At Ohio State in 2025, Tate ranked second in the FBS with nine catches of 40-plus yards. “He got behind the defense in a pretty good league in college,” Daboll said at rookie minicamp. “And then his range and ability to track the ball and his hands. His hands have been very good. His ability to pluck it and high point it and make catches in traffic. He’s a crafty route-runner. “Look, he’s going to have a lot of challenging things that happen to him as a young receiver,” Daboll added. “There’s a transition from college to the NFL, as there is with every position. But his mindset, his makeup [stand out]. … We had a really good 30 visit. He’s a very mature young man for only being 21 years old.” In Daboll’s offense, the wide receivers are expected to know all the spots in the formation. So the plan is to move Tate around. How he processes that remains to be seen. “We’ll give him as much as he can handle,” Daboll said. The Titans have a “consensus vision” on what Tate will be in the offense, according to assistant GM Dave Zeiger. “A lot of times, you get the bigger, taller, linear receivers. … I call them first- and second-down guys,” Zeigler told reporters last week. “They’re not productive on third down because they don’t have the route tree to do that. Or you have a bigger guy that doesn’t consistently play big at the catch point. “Carnell checked a lot of those boxes. We’re feeling we’re really getting a complete three-down player that can contribute on these critical downs and these critical situations, third down and the red zone.” When Tate starts to practice, we’ll see if the former college WR2 can be a true WR1 in the NFL.