The Cincinnati Bengals will begin training camp without one of their defensive cornerstones.
According to ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler, star safety Jessie Bates III will not report with the rest of the team’s veterans on Tuesday. He has yet to sign the franchise tag the Bengals applied in March.
As Ryan Dunleavy of the New York Post noted, Bates doesn’t have to worry about incurring fines by sitting out training camp since he’s not yet under contract.
Of course, he’d leave money on the table by carrying his holdout into the season. Bates, who earned second-team All-Pro honors in 2020, would make $12.9 million under the franchise tag.
Training camp hasn’t begun, but fans across the NFL are already clamoring for their favorite teams to acquire Bates.
However, it doesn’t seem like the Bengals are looking to trade Bates. Owner Mike Brown told The Cincinnati Enquirer‘s Charlie Goldsmith that he regrets not extending the 25-year-old sooner, but he still believes Bates “fits with us.”
It might take a while before Bates and the Bengals resolve their current dispute.