The Bengals are in a tough spot with Jessie Bates and there's only one clear answer
Just about everything has gone right for the Cincinnati Bengals this offseason except one thing — one of their best players, safety Jessie Bates, hasn't signed his contract for the 2022 season yet. Bates, a second-round pick by Cincinnati in the 2018 NFL Draft, was franchised tagged by the Bengals earlier this offseason. The former […]
Just about everything has gone right for the Cincinnati Bengals this offseason except one thing — one of their best players, safety Jessie Bates, hasn't signed his contract for the 2022 season yet.
Bates, a second-round pick by Cincinnati in the 2018 NFL Draft, was franchised tagged by the Bengals earlier this offseason.
The former Wake Forest standout has been looking for a new contract since last summer, but very little progress has been made due to Cincinnati's unofficial policy of limiting guaranteed money in contracts.
As a result, Bates has yet to report to any team activities this offseason. And because he hasn't signed his contract, the Bengals can't fine him for missing mandatory offseason workouts or training camp.
That means this contract dispute could linger into the 2022 season (though Bates would be missing out on nearly $13 million if he holds out through the season).
The best move for Cincinnati right now would be to go ahead and trade Bates — essentially what the Tennessee Titans did with AJ Brown, the Green Bay Packers with Davante Adams and the Kansas City Chiefs with Tyreek Hill.
It's apparent that Cincinnati doesn't plan on giving Bates the guaranteed money he desires (side note: Cincy will need to change their approach soon or they risk running into the same problem with Joe Burrow, Tee Higgins, and/or Ja'Marr Chase). They might as well trade the young safety and load up on draft picks (it's hard to tell what kind of compensation the Bengals would want for Bates, but an early-round draft pick seems likely).
Cincinnati drafted Michigan safety Dax Hill in the 2022 NFL Draft. He's a high-upside, versatile defender who can serve as a replacement for Bates. I think it's reasonable to suggest that the Bengals drafted Hill specifically with the expectation that he replaces Bates. However, I'm guessing that Cincy was hoping that Bates would quickly sign his franchise tag tender, play in 2022, and then the Bengals could pivot to Hill in 2023.
I think the Bengals would be wise to follow the lead of other playoff teams and just make the trade now, instead of suffering through a summer of drama with Bates. Otherwise, who knows how this plays out. As crazy as this offseason has been, there's not much that would surprise me at this point.
Featured image via Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
