The Tennessee Titans lit a match with their No. 4 overall pick, and taking Carnell Tate that high instantly became one of the topics of discussion of the 2026 NFL Draft. And not everyone in league circles was on board. That includes Malik Nabers, who didn’t dance around it.
NFL World Reacts to Malik Nabers Throwing Shade at the Titans No. 4 Overall Carnell Tate
The New York Giants star, himself a top-10 pick just two years ago (No. 6 overall), went public with a brutally honest evaluation.
“I wanted him to come to LSU coming out of high school. I was there when he visited, and I wanted him to come. He’s a very talented player. He’s going to do well in Coach Daboll’s offense. I was in that offense. It’s going to be hard to learn, but he’s a very smart player. He’s going to get it. Wan’Dale is there too, so he’s definitely going to help him.”
So far, so good, but it was just a formality before turning up the heat. And Nabers went all in with his take.
He added, “But I just don’t think this is the draft to take a receiver that high. That’s high. Do I see him as a number one in the NFL? No, I don’t see him being a number one. He hasn’t been the number one on the team he’s been on.
“You have to be a number one on the team you’re coming from to be a number one on the team you’re going to, because they’re going to trust you to be the first person they throw the ball to, the first person they count on. When the rep is there, you have to be that guy. You can’t be the second option. Anybody can do that.”
FOX Sports’ Kev Mahserejian re-shared the post with the caption pleading the league to ban active players from sharing their draft takes: “active NFL players should be banned from speaking into a podcast microphone, man, Malik Nabers is talking NASTY about Carnell Tate 😭”
Jax Falcone, founder of OTC Fantasy Football, laid the truth: “JSN was absolutely his team’s WR1 in 2021 in Ohio St. He was also not drafted at #4.”
Jaxon Smith-Njigba was No. 20 overall. The implication was clear. If that profile didn’t crack the top five, why did Tate?
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A member of the New York Giants community, Dom, wrote: “Say what you want, but it’s actually really dope hearing active players speak so candidly on the draft lmao.”
Polymarket Football also posted the clip with this caption: “Malik Nabers SMOKES the Titans for drafting Carnell Tate 4th overall.”
Bracco Football‘s X page also let one fly: “Malik Nabers just cooked Carnell Tate alive.”
Titans Roundtable obviously liked it more when Micah Parsons defended Tate, as they captioned: “Malik Nabers and Micah Parsons debate the #Titans going with Carnell Tate at No. 4. Really interesting conversation here. Parsons definitely seems more informed in his opinion.”
Parsons came in with a completely different lens, focusing less on Tate in isolation and more on roster construction.
“Jeremiyah [Love] is special. Do you have Carnell in your top 10? So clearly you think he’s talented. But what do you think about him going at four?
I like the pick. This is exactly what I was talking about. Yeah, you probably need defense. Yeah, you probably need offensive line. But you need to help Cam Ward.
Calvin Ridley hasn’t really been on the field a lot the last couple of years. They really don’t have a guy they can go to deep downfield. This makes sense.
And this is what I mean when you’re drafting as a GM. You’ve got Brian Daboll, a great offensive coordinator. You’ve got Cam Ward with the arm talent. How do I help my quarterback? How do I help the person I took with the number one overall pick develop into the franchise player we want him to be without hurting the organization?
That’s the guy you’re saying is your number one. And that’s what you’ve got to see out of teams over the next couple of years. Do we put forward the guy that we chose number one?
This makes the most sense. You have to help Cam Ward.”
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That’s really where this argument splits. Evaluation versus situation. Tate, by the numbers, checks out. An 84.5 impact score on PFSN’s CFB WR Impact metrics, ranked No. 8 nationally, and widely viewed as one of the most technically promising receivers in the class. But the question isn’t talent. It’s a projection at that slot.
For the Titans, this wasn’t about consensus boards. It was about building around Ward and accelerating his development curve. Whether Tate becomes that true WR1, Nabers questioned, will define how this pick is remembered.
