As skepticism swirls around the Titans' latest first-round pick, a former teammate shuts down the critics, drawing on his own NFL success to fuel Carnell Tate’s professional debut.
All eyes were on the Tennessee Titans with the No. 4 pick in the 2026 NFL Draft.
To set the scene, the Las Vegas Raiders took Fernando Mendoza as everyone thought they would. Then, the New York Jets picked Texas Tech edge rusher David Bailey.
The Arizona Cardinals selected Jeremiyah Love at No. 3, so the Titans had to pivot to someone else. General Manager Mike Borgonzi stuck to his plan of taking the best player available and went with Ohio State receiver Carnell Tate.
Not everyone was on board at first with the pick.
It sparked a debate between Green Bay Packers edge rusher Micah Parsons and New York Giants receiver Malik Nabers. Nabers questioned whether Tate had what it took to be a top receiver in the NFL since he was No. 2 at Ohio State behind Jeremiah Smith.
Parsons referenced Jaxon Smith-Njigba, who played slot receiver at Ohio State. Smith-Njigba led the NFL with 1,793 receiving yards with the Seattle Seahawks last season.
Another NFL player has now weighed in on the debate. Emeka Egbuka appeared on a recent edition of the "Up & Adams Show with Kay Adams."
Egbuka overlapped with Tate at Ohio State for two seasons. Tate took over at slot receiver as a true freshman for Egbuka after he suffered an injury that forced him to miss a few games.
Egbuka was drafted by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and had 938 receiving yards as a rookie. He revealed that people had doubts about him out of college as well. He gave Tate advice, calling what Nabers said semantics.
"I mean, yeah, we could see the correlation," Egbuka said. "I mean, that was the same talk that was about me when I was coming out of the draft. So, I mean at the end of the day, it's all semantics. If you can play football, you can play football and Carnell [Tate] can play football. So, we're going to see what you can do come September."
Tate is already listed as one of the starting receivers on the outside by Ourlads.com. At this point, the starters are going to be Tate and Calvin Ridley on the outside, with Wan'Dale Robinson in the slot.
The Titans added Robinson in free agency from the Giants.
Elic Ayomanor and Chimere Dike are going to rotate in at receiver as well, it seems. The other reserves are currently Bryce Oliver, Mason Kinsey, Xavier Restrepo, Tyren Montgomery, K.J. Osborn, Courtney Jackson and Hank Beatty.
There is more than just one former Ohio State receiver who has been doubted before entering the NFL. Smith-Njigba and Egbuka are recent success stories that Tate should follow.