Report: Bengals likely to franchise tag safety Jessie Bates

The Cincinnati Bengals want to re-sign safety Jessie Bates, and they will likely use the franchise tag to keep the defensive back on the roster while they work on a deal, according to Tyler Dragon of USA Today.

Bates, 25, spoke in February about his desire to avoid the franchise tag, but the Bengals are running out of time to reach an extension with the safety. Free agency is set to begin March 16 with a two-day tampering period ahead of that, which would allow other teams to contact Bates' agent. With just over a week to get a deal done, Cincinnati has until Tuesday to decide if it wants to use the franchise tag.

If franchised, Bates and the Bengals will have until the middle of July to negotiate a deal that rescinds the tag. If no deal were to be reached, Bates would be due to make over $13 million on a one-year deal.

Bates was a second-round pick in the 2018 NFL Draft and has missed only two games in the last four seasons. In 2020, he was a Second-Team All-Pro and Bates played a key role in leading the Bengals to Super Bowl LVI earlier this year. Late in the second half of the Super Bowl, Bates intercepted Matthew Stafford deep in Bengals territory.