NEW YORK — Giants coach Joe Judge said he spoke with Golden Tate "at length" about his recent public frustrations in the team's offense, and Tate would not be a part of Wednesday's walkthrough practice.
Judge said he'll handle the matter internally and that Tate would be back at practice Thursday.
Judge would not say definitively that Tate's absence Wednesday was a disciplinary measure, though it seemed obvious it was.
Tate yelled "throw me the damn ball" at the Giants' sideline after his first catch on Monday night against the Buccaneers, and he screamed "throw me the ball" into ESPN's end zone camera after his second catch for a TD.
Tate's wife Elise also ranted in Instagram Monday night that Tate's lack of usage in the offense was affecting his stats, and said Tate was open often but not receiving the ball.
The Giants likely would have traded Tate before Tuesday's deadline if they'd found any takers for the player and his expensive contract ($4.5 million owed the rest of the season), but there were no takers.
"It has to be team first for every coach and every player," Judge said. "I'm not gonna tolerate any selfish behavior from any coaches or players. It's not gonna happen."
Judge said he would not go into further detail on Tate's punishment — and hasn't in other player disciplinary situations — because "I don't believe in holding trial for any of my coaches or players in the public eye. I choose to handle things internally because it's my job to protect the team.
"I'm not gonna put my players on blast publicly," he said. Instead, Judge will handle it internally.
But he made clear on Tate: he handled it.
