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The first big step of the offseason for Cincinnati Bengals after the Super Bowl trip is retaining some of their own guys.
Safety Jessie Bates, one of the best in the NFL at his position, headlines that conversation.
Tuesday, Feb. 22, officially begins the window for teams to apply franchise and transition tags. That window remains open until March 8.
Now, the window opening doesn’t mean the Bengals will be in a hurry to slap a tag on Bates. There’s no need to rush. In fact, due to the nature of negotiations, this one might run right up to the buzzer.
Complicating matters is the fact Bates regressed in a pretty big way at times this past season compared to the year prior, to the point he even admitted he was having problems. But…he then turned it on for the playoffs and helped spur the Super Bowl run.
Prior to the season, it hadn’t sounded like the two sides were particularly close, which could muddy things, too.
Either way, the franchise tag for a safety checks in at roughly $13.5 million. The Bengals are top-five in projected cap space, so whether they apply a tag or work out an extension won’t have too big of an impact on the team’s ability to make other signings this offseason. More important is the long-term ramifications in future years as extensions for other players start coming due.
Either way, fans can safely expect Bates isn’t leaving town. And it probably doesn’t hurt Mike Hilton and Logan Wilson are publicly campaigning for his return.
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