Eagles' latest signing prompts fascinating twist to right guard position battle

The former Clemson Tiger was a four-year starter at left guard on the offensive line. Tate started 37 career games and was a second-team All-ACC selection last year.

It's a new lineman for Eagles offensive line coach Jeff Stoutland to develop, but with an already crowded roster, where does that leave Tate? Could he be a genuine challenger for the open right guard position, or will he be a training camp casualty?

Will the Eagles have Tate challenge for the right guard position?

Currently at right guard, the position battle is between Tyler Steen and Kenyon Green. The Philadelphia Eagles selected Steen in the third round of the 2023 NFL Draft and have made three starts in his career. Green was a first-round pick of the Houston Texans in 2022, and although he has made 23 starts, he has been inconsistent and frequently injured, which led to his trade to the Eagles for C.J. Gardner-Johnson.

Tate is an interesting prospect as he was a projected sixth-round pick in the 2025 NFL Draft that wasn't selected. His Next Gen stats, which graded him against other guards at the NFL Combine, are favorable for Tate, as he ranked 15th in total score with a score of 66. Tate's athleticism stands out, as evidenced by his grade of 77, the 10th highest among the other rookie guards.

The cold, hard reality is that Tate will have an uphill battle to climb to make the roster, but all the traits and attributes to compete with the rest of the linemen. Philadelphia has a good history of low-round, or undrafted underdogs starting on the offensive line from Jason Kelce to Jordan Mailata.

Steen is expected to be the favorite to win the right guard job since he has two years of experience in the offense. Green has all the talent to get there, but durability and inconsistency are his biggest downfalls. Tate also has durability issues as he has missed at least one regular season game in each of the last three years.

Training camp will be the actual test of whether Tate moves to right guard to compete or tries his luck as a backup left guard. Either way, he'll have some work to do to make the final roster.