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...for a 3rd round pick next year.

My initial reaction was that this is a boneheaded move, but if you consider:

-his age
-the fact that this was the final year of his contract
-the fact that he has fallen off a bit in production (currently ranked only #24 in the league in receiving yards)
-his showboating issues
-the fact that Detroit already has a fairly deep receiving core,

this move just might make sense for them moving forward.

Wow! Didn't think it would happen despite the rumors. At least we get a 3rd rounder out of it; most pundits posited a 4th rounder.

Looks like T.J. Jones is the new slot receiver. (Who else, undrafted rookie Brandon Powell?) He's waited a long time for this shot.

(edit)
mLive is saying Brandon Powell is indeed Tate's replacement at slot receiver.

(edit #2)
mLive is also saying WR Marvin Jones had his contract restructured, which in combination with the trade of Tate, makes for a total of $6 million coming off the books for this season. Quinn may not be done dealing! 9 Minutes to deadline as I type this.

Tate's contract was up at the end of the year and he likely wasn't going to re-sign with the Lions anyway. He was having a mediocre season. The move frees up cap room (as Moldy duly notes) and the Lions at least walked away with some decent - a 3rd round draft pick.

When you look at comparable moves made at or just before the deadline, some teams settled for 4th or 5th round picks.

All-in-all, a decent deal for the Lions. This team had little chance of making the playoffs this year. Long-term, this was the right move to make.

Detroit was only a game out of first place. Surely the offer from Philly would have stood an additional week or 2 if Detroit had lost today with him. Not sure why they were so anxious to unload him.

There was a trading deadline that came and went. If they didn't do it when they did it was gone.

For a measly 3rd rounder... yuck...

By NFL standards that 3rd rounder was a good deal. That's better than many expected.

After yesterday's debacle in Minnesota, it should be clear that this team is far from ready for prime-time. Would Tate's presence have increased our chances to cash in inside the red zone? Perhaps, but still....

It was interesting that RB Theo Riddick seemingly took the majority of snaps at Tate's slot receiver spot.

My concern at this point is whether Quinn and Patricia are the guys.
When Quinn fired Caldwell he said back to back 9-7 seasons wasn't good enough. I'm good with that.
When asked if he thought the Lions talent was better than 9-7 he said yes. I don't know if they were or not but he said they were.
When he hired Patricia I don't remember him saying or hinting the Lions would have to go backwards in order to go forwards.
Did he say that and I don't remember?
Was it supposed to be a given?
Why should I assume or hope Matt Patricia will be a success in his first ever head coaching job?

The absence of Tate isn't why Stafford got sacked ten times.

Quit making excuses people. The Lions SUCK. Period. This team was going absolutely nowhere with or without Tate.

Having Tate on the field didn't seem to help much against the pitiful Jets. Or Seattle. His numbers have been mediocre this year.

The play calling is garbage, Stafford is overrated (not bad, just overrated), and the O-line remains weak. Defensive unit has also taken a major step backward this season, in part due to injury. What they allowed the Jets and Niners to do is disturbing.