Golden Tate reacts to Mike Evans-Marshon Lattimore fight: 'Lot of us go to a very dark place when we step on the field'

Former star NFL wide receiver Golden Tate understood what was happening when Marshon Lattimore of the New Orleans Saints and Mike Evans of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers got into a fight this past Sunday.

"I understand there’s a lot of aggression between these two teams, and also those guys specifically. Lattimore and Evans have past incidents of being scrappy," Tate wrote on The 33rd Team. 

Tate, who played 12 NFL seasons with the Seattle Seahawks, Detroit Lions, and New York Giants, felt that the beginning of the scuffle — Lattimore getting in Tom Brady's business — was completely normal behavior for an NFL field. Most who watch the game normally would likely agree. It's not all that uncommon for players to chirp at each other and neither Brady nor Lattimore are the type to shrink away from emotions between plays.

That's just football, according to Tate, and against, that's a tough take to argue against. The former NFL wideout wasn't all that down with what Evans did, though. The Tampa Bay star was on the sideline and not involved with the previous play, but he still ran out onto the field and bull-rushed Lattimore, leading to the scrum. 

"I don’t have a problem with Lattimore getting in Tom Brady’s face or getting chirpy with Leonard Fournette. Ultimately, Evans came off the sideline and shoved that man to the ground on national TV. I’m not sure how anyone reacts to that situation any differently than Lattimore did, and he shouldn’t have been ejected," Tate said. "Evans is the homie, but from what I could see, him getting tossed was probably the right call."

Ultimately, Tate saw the fight as a crossing of the proverbial line. Football is a violent game and it takes a certain "warrior mindset to compete in it at the highest levels. Tate likened it to going to a dark place.

"We play a very aggressive sport, and a lot of us go to a very dark place when we step on the field,

 he explained. "It is what it is."

Flirting with the line between the game and the "dark place" is just part of the mentality it takes to succeed in the NFL. Crossing it, though? Well, that's a different story. 

"Personally, I’m going to get my team any advantage I possibly can by flirting with that line. But I’m going to do my best to never jeopardize my team with a penalty hopefully, and I’m definitely not going to jeopardize my pockets," Tate said. "I am not going to pay the NFL any more money than I already have to."

Evans will be suspended without pay for Tampa Bay's Week 3 clash with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Lattimore was ejected but has not faced any further consequences.