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It's rarely garbage time for Bucs TE Cameron Brate

 
Cameron Brate is tied for the NFL lead among tight ends with five touchdowns this season, three shy of the club record for his position.
Cameron Brate is tied for the NFL lead among tight ends with five touchdowns this season, three shy of the club record for his position.
Published Nov. 17, 2016

TAMPA -- Cameron Brate, Harvard grad, isn't the smartest guy in the room. Or the townhouse he shares with receiver Adam Humphries and quarterback Ryan Griffin. Well, his ACT score and diploma may beg to differ, but he doesn't act like it anyway.

Brate is tied for the NFL lead among tight ends with five touchdowns this season, three shy of the club record for his position. He's a Fantasy Football hero, a go-to guy in the red zone and a big reason for the Bucs' faint hopes of a winning record this season.

He also has poor eyesight, says he can't hear very well and just last week learned how to take out the trash.

"We had to teach him how to tie the bags together though," Humphries said. "Kind of like tying a shoe. Not too hard. Yeah, he was taking the trash out this past week and he was bragging. 'Yo, check this out. I'm taking the trash out.' If you have to brag about taking the trash out, something's wrong."

Brate, 25, pleads guilty when it comes to not pulling his own weight as part of the Bucs' Odd Triple. All three were undrafted free agents, all cut at least once and relegated to the practice squad. The uncertain nature of the NFL made them revert to a college living arrangement.

"It works. It somehow works," Brate said. "Each of us does our own thing but it ends up being okay. They always get on me for not providing anything for the room and lately I've been trying to do more and more and make sure they notice when I do stuff.

"Oh, you should've seen Sunday and the mess these guys left and I cleaned up. It was unbelievable. Oh, yeah, I've been really pulling my weight lately."

The base of an artificial Christmas tree sits in their living room because they don't know where to store it. "It's like a tree and you don't have to water it," Griffin said.

Griffin and Brate do most of the cooking. "He handles the meats," Brate said. "We do a lot of fish. I'm mostly the vegetables, the side dish kind of guy. And I take pride in that role. Usually like mixed greens. I will sautee some vegetables. I get after it."

Humphries can only cook the rice in a microwave.

"I just think it's better for our taste buds if Cam and I prepare the food and Adam eats it and gives us the review," Griffin said.

All three could earn fat paychecks in the future. Brate and Humphries are tied for second on the team with 35 receptions and Griffin will be the No. 2 quarterback behind Winston next season.

Be sure to read the full story in Sunday's Tampa Bay Times.