Jessie

Bates III

Bates was considered “as good as gone” from the Bengals by The Athletic’s Jay Morrison back in February. Now, that speculation has been confirmed, as Bates inks a four-year deal with the Falcons, who will give him $23 million in the first year of his deal. Bates reluctantly played under the franchise tag last season but was due a big payday after performing at a high level for his first five years in the league. Bates was named a Second-team All-Pro in 2020 and has totaled 14 interceptions and 479 tackles in his career. He will immediately improve a Falcons pass defense that allowed the eighth-most passing yards (231.9) last season.

Bates was a good solider and played last year on the franchise tag, he’ll likely be one of the NFL’s biggest free agents this offseason with a number of teams pursuing safety help. The Bengals drafted Dax Hill last offseason to take Bates’ spot and though Bates has said he’d love to return to Cincinnati, the actions are speaking louder than the words on Cincinnati’s desire (or lack thereof) to give him a long-term deal.

Bates was franchise tagged by the Bengals for the 2022 season, and is once again set to hit free agency. The former second-round pick has spent his first fives seasons with the Bengals, starting 79 games while totaling 14 interceptions, 43 passes defensed, and three forced fumbles. A Second-team All-Pro in 2020, Bates will be one of the more coveted safeties on the market when free agency officially opens. He held out for the majority of last summer in hopes of signing a new contract, but ultimately signed his franchise tag on August 23rd and reported to training camp.

Bates reportedly signed the franchise tag Tuesday. It appears he will suit up this season as the Bengals defend their AFC title crown. The team had reportedly offered Bates a five-year deal without sufficient guaranteed money. Bates, who has 13 interceptions and 35 passes defended in four NFL seasons, was a key piece of a Bengals secondary that stepped it up late in the 2021 season and into the postseason. Pro Football Focus graded Cincinnati’s defense as the 11th best coverage unit in 2021.

This was expected, and it will be an official start to a holdout. The deadline for a long-term deal has already passed, so it’s unclear what type of resolution Bates is wanting from the Bengals. We can only imagine he desires a trade, as he’s already stated he won’t play on the franchise tag. We’ll see how long this thing drags out.

Considering the deadline for the two sides to reach a long-term deal is in mere hours, this could be a final push by Bates’ side to get the Bengals to better their offer. According to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, the Bengals are offering Bates a five-year deal, but it includes minimal guaranteed money over what he’d get on the franchise tag. This isn’t the first time it’s been reported that Bates has no plans to play on the tag.

There “isn’t a lot of optimism,” per NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo, that the Bengals will bridge the gap between the tag and the top of the safety market for Bates. A new deal would exceed $18 million per year for Bates while he would make $12.9 million under the tag. Bates skipped OTAs and has previously said he wouldn’t play on the tag. The Bengals can’t sign Bates after July 15, but the fifth-year safety could limit his exposure and extend his holdout into training camp.

“It seems like anything is possible here, including a lengthy holdout,” Fowler writes. Bates had a somewhat down season last year in PFF’s coverage metrics, falling from a 90.0 grade in 2020 to a 70.0 grade in 2021. He also had two picks and six pass breakups in the playoffs alone, and was an obvious franchise tag target. It’ll be interesting to see how much goodwill there is on both sides as Cincinnati has spent in free agency the last two years and Bates looks deserving of a near-top-of-market deal.

The Bengals are reportedly working towards a contract extension with Bates, who they selected in the second round of the 2018 draft. Tagging Bates provides the Bengals with additional time to come to an agreement on a long-term deal. If Bates plays on the tag in 2022, it is expected to cost the Bengals around $12.5 million. Bates is just 25 years old and is coming off a playoff run with 20 tackles, two interceptions, and six pass breakups. One way or another, he will be a part of the Bengals’ 2022 attempt to make back-to-back Super Bowls.

The Bengals plan to use the tag to buy time toward a long-term deal. Extending Bates would lower his 2022 cap hit and allow the Bengals to sign other free agents. Bates had a down 2021 but came on strong in the playoffs and will be among the top paid safeties on his next contract. Franchising Bates would cost Cincinnati $12.5 million if an extension isn’t reached.