A reporter's work requires a lot of professionalism, but Detroit Lions head coach Matt Patricia was not feeling that from one of the reporters during a press conference one day after the Lions traded away wide receiver Golden Tate. Patricia, whose team is off to a 3-4 start and one game out of the division lead, seems to have his focus on coaching someone whose job it is to ask about the team.

Patricia: 'Have respect for the process'

A press conference was hosted on Wednesday for first-year head coach Matt Patricia to open up questions to the media one day after the organization traded away Tate to the Philadelphia Eagles.

Tate has been one of the biggest catch threats in the NFL this season, and the question arose as to why trading him away would make Detroit better.

After Patricia finished answering a question about why the organization decided to trade away one of its best players one game out of the division lead, the question of how it makes the team better came next. The reporter who asked this question during the press conference was ESPN’s Michael Rothstein, who covers the Lions for the network.

Rothstein asked, “Why do you think this move makes your franchise better?”

Patricia started to answer the question before halting to ‘suggest’ a reporter rework his posture. ”Ah, well, you know. Do me a favor and just kinda sit up, just like, have a little respect for the process,” the 3-4 head coach said.

Patricia continued on, saying, “So ask me a question professionally and I’ll answer it for you.”

After Rothstein reworked his posture off camera, Patricia finally answered his question saying the move would help the franchise long term.

Tate traded to Philadelphia

Tate joined the Lions in 2014 following a career opening stint with the Seattle Seahawks where he was a part of Seattle’s Super Bowl-winning team. This season, Tate was one of the best receivers in the league for yards after a catch. Specifically, he ranked 13 in the NFL in that stat category. Now his talent is headed to Philly.

According to Terez Paylor of Yahoo Sports, he can also benefit the defending Super Bowl champion Eagles with third downs, slot receptions, and even run blocking, surprisingly enough.

Tate is ready to become a free agent at the end of this season, and he likely was not going to get his money from Detroit. Detroit now has targets that are going to be focused on second-year receiver Kenny Golladay and veteran Marvin Jones Jr.
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