Bengals safety Jessie Bates did not sign his franchise tender and return to the team until August 23. But as the regular season starts, Bates doesn’t look like someone who didn’t participate in the offseason program and much of training camp.
That’s according to head coach Zac Taylor, who addressed the safety when speaking to the media on Monday.
“I forget that he missed time to be honest with you,” Taylor said, via Geoff Hobson of the team’s website. “I think he did a really good job taking care of himself. We wanted to be cautious as we integrated him back into what we were doing. He’s a got a great understanding of what we’re doing and he’s up to speed on any tweaks that we made and we expect him to be out there every down.”
That’s been the case for Bates since he entered the league, as he’s played nearly every defensive snap in each season for the Bengals since they selected him in the second round of the 2018 draft.
Last year, Bates finished the season with 88 total tackles, four passes defensed, a fumble recovery, and an interception in 15 games.
Bates will make $12.9 million on his franchise tender in 2022.