Trade Deadline Depression

The NFL trade deadline has come and passed for the 2018-2019 season. I wasn't worried going into this years deadline because the Lions were in a good spot. They weren't in any need to drop any major contracts, and if a trade were to be made, I thought it would be getting rid of a minor player who was under performing. All day I heard rumors of Lions trading Golden Tate, which started to worry me. Ever since Calvin Johnson retirement, Tate instantly became my favorite player. I also truly believed that Tate is a huge key to the offense, and without him we would lose a lot of consistency and leadership. Thinking it wouldn't make sense for a trade like that I thought the rumors weren't true and everything would be fine. That is until I sat in my calculus class and my phone vibrated. I slowly pulled out my phone to see the reason for the buzz. When I looked at my phone I couldn't believe my eyes. the ESPN notification read: Lions trade WR Tate to Eagles. Forgetting about the fact that I'm in class I let out a long, depressing "Noooooo" For the rest of class I continuously ranted to anyone who would listen. "Why only a 3rd round pick" and "Are we really giving up on the season already" were only a few things being said. Things only got worse when I checked Instagram after school. Everything in my feed was about the trade, which did nothing but frustrate me. The worst was when I saw a post from Golden Tate himself asking what number he should wear in Philly. Now, over 24 hours after the trade, from the time I'm writing this, I've begun to mentally accept the trade. I'm still not happy or agree with the decision, but I am still confident in the key pieces still involved in the current roster. After the trade, Kenny Golladay will now be the number two receiver on the depth chart. We were also able to free up 2.2 million dollars of cap space which could be used to bring in a key player next season. I'm also hoping in the back of my mind that Tate, who is a free agent next year, might come back to Detroit. The chance of that happening is very low, but I can hope. This Sunday, Lions play the Minnesota Vikings, a divisional game. This game is a must win for Detroit, and the losing of Tate doesn't help our situation. Either way the Lions have to be ready for what the Vikings will give them.