Giants’ Emergency QB: ‘Ew. Ew. This Can Be Scary’

Getty Golden Tate #15 of the New York Giants reacts to a touchdown during the first quarter against the Philadelphia Eagles.

Yes, the New York Giants are possibly on the verge of adding Joe Webb and/or Alex Tanney to their quarterback room. With that said, should starter Daniel Jones miss this week’s game against the Seahawks, veteran Colt McCoy and current practice squad occupant, Clayton Thorson, would likely be the only two signal-callers active on gameday. If that were the case, wide receiver Golden Tate would enter the game as the team’s emergency quarterback with an unlikely, yet minimal chance of being called upon, a scenario which both intrigues and horrifies the 32-year-old pass-catcher.

“It’s one of those things that sounds really cool when you’re just talking about it not thinking it realistically is going to happen,” Tate said of playing the quarterback position, per ESPN’s Jordan Raanan. “But once it becomes potentially realistic you’re, ‘Ew. Ew. This can be scary.'”

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Tate’s History as a Passer

We don’t need to look back very far to see how scary of a situation it could be. Just last week, the Denver Broncos were forced to start a practice squad wide receiver at quarterback after COVID-19 violations stripped the team of their four actual quarterbacks.

No indictment on Kendall Hinton, who was dealt a bad hand, but the undrafted free agent who last played quarterback full-time at Wake Forest in 2017, failed to get the offense not just out of first gear, but even out of park. While the Broncos’ play-calling certainly didn’t put Hinton in the best position to succeed (Pat Shurmur, we’re looking at you), it’s clearly a situation a team would be best to avoid if possible.

Over his 157 game career, Tate has attempted three passes, completing two of them for 41 yards and a touchdown. Two of those attempts came this season with Big Blue, including an 18-yard completion to running back Wayne Gallman against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers back in Week 8 on Monday Night Football.

Tate’s Baseball Background

Does having a background in baseball make you a great quarterback? Maybe not. But the fact that great quarterbacks such as Patrick Mahomes and Russell Wilson do have a background in baseball is likely something Tate could hang his hat on where he pressed into duties at the position.

A former standout outfielder at Pope John Paul II High School, Tate was drafted directly out of school by the Arizona Diamondbacks in the 42nd round of the 2007 draft. Instead of joining the team, he went on to attend the University of Notre Dame, where he played two seasons on the Fighting Irish’s baseball team. He scored 45 runs as a Sophomore and finished his collegiate baseball career with a 0.318 batting average. He would go on to once again be drafted, this time by the San Francisco Giants in 2010, but opted to stick with football. I’d say, all-in-all, a good decision in hindsight.

Colt McCoy on Potentially Starting at QB

In reality, if Daniel Jones is unavailable come Sunday, it will be Colt McCoy under center for the Giants and hopefully only Colt McCoy, an opportunity that the veteran would cherish.

“Any time you get to go out as a starter, if that happens this week, you’re one of 32 guys that get to do that in the whole world. I certainly don’t take that for granted,” McCoy told reporters this week. “My focus right now is really on this team and what we’ve got going. If I’m called on, how I can be my best out there for us.”