Texans’ Ben Tate gets opportunity to audition his skills for starting role somewhere else
By Josh Davis
Arian Foster is out for the season after opting for back surgery, so it’s time for the next man up in Houston. That’s kind of been the theme of the year for the Texans hasn’t it?
In the running backs case, the next man up is Ben Tate. When Foster returns, he will be the starter again without question. Tate has a pretty good seasonal resume to this point, but really gets a chance to prove he’s ready to take the next step in his career by carrying a football team on his back for the second half of the season.
Tate had one thought about his backup role in Houston, that he’s not satisfied there:
"“I would be lying to you if I told you that I embraced the complement role to someone else,” Tate told Ross Jones of FOXSports.com. “That’s not why I wanted to be in the NFL. That’s not my dream to complement someone else. That’s not what my attitude or why I work out is to complement someone else.”"
Ian Rappaport also pointed out earlier today that the Texans are strapped anyway when it comes to cash to carry both backs on the roster.
On #Texans RB Ben Tate: He may be playing for a contract with his next team. Houston can’t afford Foster and Tate, who is up after this year
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) November 10, 2013
Tate is playing with four cracked ribs, so the dedication to show off his worth to the league is sure to lure several teams to look at him for a starting role, if his talent didn’t already. We’ll see how durable he can be.
[credits: NFL.com]