ALLEN PARK, Mich. — Jalen Ramsey and Golden Tate are practically family. They’ve known each other for years, back to when Ramsey and Tate’s sisters attended high school together at Brentwood Academy in Tennessee.
Ramsey eventually started dating one of Tate’s younger sisters, Breanna, and the two had a child together earlier this year. So Golden Tate and Ramsey are close. Which is why all Tate could do was laugh when he heard about Ramsey’s comments about his family in a GQ article published Wednesday, saying the Ramseys could take the Tates in a family Olympics.
As far as the trash talk — which, according to the story, started when Breanna said the Tates could take the Ramseys — Ramsey told Breanna, “Your family’s too short! I’m going up on top of all of them. Please let Golden guard me. I’m going up top on Golden.”
Tate broke into a big smile after Detroit Lions practice Wednesday when he heard that before saying that, no, that would not happen. Tate, of course, said he would “handle Jalen myself.”
“Nah, he has to match my quickness, too,” Tate said. “He’s an outside guy. He don’t want no business in the slot. The slot’s all me. But no, Jalen, that’s one of the homies, tremendous talent. Love watching him play. Love watching him talk some s—.
“He’s going to bring it every day. Happy he’s part of the family. He’s good people, I’m sure. Over the next few years I’m sure we’re going to be working out, put it on video. He’s a good guy, man. I love him.”
In the story, Ramsey also mentioned Tate’s quarterback, Matthew Stafford. While he didn’t rip on Stafford as he did some other signal-callers, he offered faint praise at best for the Lions’ starter, who has thrown the ball to Tate the past four seasons. Tate has caught at least 90 passes each season since arriving from Seattle and topped the 1,000-yard receiving mark in three of them.
“Matthew Stafford, I think he’s straight,” Ramsey said in the story. “I don’t think he the best quarterback out there. But he do what he gotta do.”
To which Tate openly wondered about the last time the Jaguars played the Lions. They played two years ago, with Detroit winning at Ford Field.
“He has his opinion,” Tate said.
Stafford completed 24 of 33 passes that day for 278 yards, no touchdowns and no interceptions in a 26-19 victory over Jacksonville. Ramsey, then a rookie, had six total tackles.
Tate knows Ramsey better than most in the league. And while he chooses to “stay in my lane and play football,” he has no problem with Ramsey expressing himself.
“It takes a strong person to talk out like that,” Tate said. “Because you know you’re going to be criticized by everybody. You know that. But you know, he believes in what he’s saying. I believe everyone is open to their own opinion, whether I agree with them or not.
“That’s part of being an American. So I like reading it. Just try not to be in the middle of it.”
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