Considered by many the last few years as one of Cincinnati's top young defenders, and in 2020 he made the leap to one of the NFL's top safeties ... Tied for sixth in the NFL with 15 PDs in 2020, and had three INTs and a FF while helping the Bengals hold opposing passers to just a 62.8 completion percentage (sixth in NFL) ... Since entering the NFL as a second-round pick of the Bengals in 2018, has started all 48 possible games and played 98.9 percent (3223 of possible 3258) of defensive snaps ... Has topped 100 tackles in each of his three NFL seasons ... Finished second on the team in tackles (107) in 2020, and third in '19 (100) ... In 2018, became just the sixth Bengals rookie ever to lead the team in tackles (111), and was team's first rookie defender to start all 16 games since LB Takeo Spikes in 1998.
Career transactions: Selected by Cincinnati in second round of 2018 NFL Draft (54th overall) ... Signed with Bengals on 5-12-18.
2020 highlights: Started all 16 games, and played all but nine of the Bengals' 1059 defensive snaps on the season ... Totaled 107 tackles (second on team), and led team with 15 PDs (tied for sixth in NFL) and three INTs ... Also had a FF on defense, and two tackles on special teams ... Had four games with double-digit tackles (Sept. 17 at Cleveland, Oct. 4 vs. Jacksonville, Nov. 1 vs. Tennessee and Dec. 6 at Miami) ... In the season opener on Sept. 13 vs. the L.A. Chargers, totaled five tackles, including stops that forced a punt and FG, along with two PDs ... On Nov. 1 vs. Tennessee tallied 11 tackles (nine solo) and two PDs, including an INT of Titans QB Ryan Tannehill in the end zone to thwart a Titans scoring opportunity ... On Nov. 22 at Washington, Bates jumped in front of an Alex Smith pass for an INT (12 yard return) ... On Dec. 6 at Miami, Bates finished with a career-high 13 tackles (10 solo), and chased down Dolphins RB Myles Gaskin to force a fumble (Bengals recovered) at the Bengals' 13-yard line, just as Gaskin had broken free on a long run.
Previous seasons: 2018—Started all 16 games at FS as a rookie ... Elevated to No. 1 FS role in 2018 preseason after team released veteran starter George Iloka ... Played a team-high 98.7 percent of Cincinnati's defensive snaps (1114 of 1129), and was first Bengals rookie defender to start all 16 games since Takeo Spikes in 1998 ... Recorded team-high 111 tackles, and was the first Bengals rookie to lead the team in that category since Vontaze Burfict in 2012 ... Also recorded seven PDs, including three INTs (second on team) ... Selected to the All-Rookie team by the Professional Football Writers of America ... Recorded first career INT on Sept. 13 vs. Baltimore, when he picked off Ravens QB Joe Flacco in the first quarter ... On Oct. 7 vs. Miami, intercepted a pass from Dolphins QB Ryan Tannehill late in the fourth quarter to help seal a Bengals win ... Scored first career TD on Oct. 28 vs. Tampa Bay, after he intercepted Bucs QB Jameis Winston and returned it 21 yards for a score. 2019—Started all 16 games at S, and played a team-high 99 percent of defensive snaps (1059 of 1070) ... Totaled 100 tackles (third on team), along with three INTs (second on team), nine PDs (led team), one FF and one FR ... Had 11 tackles (eight solo) in Game 2 vs. San Francisco ... Recorded his first-career FR on Sept. 30 at Pittsburgh, giving Cincinnati's offense a start in the red zone ... On Nov. 17 at Oakland, jumped a route and intercepted a QB Derek Carr pass in the third quarter to set up a Bengals FG ... On Dec. 8 at Cleveland, intercepted a Baker Mayfield pass to set up a Bengals TD drive.
College: Spent three years (2015-17) at Wake Forest, with a redshirt season in '15 ... Played in 24 games, with 21 starts, in two seasons of action ... Totaled 179 tackles, including 120 solo, with 9.5 tackles for losses, six INTs, nine pass breakups and two FFs ... Averaged 32.5 return yards on six career INTs, and his 195 total return yards were third-most in school history ... Also was a punt returner, with 26 career returns for 234 yards (9.0) and a TD.
Personal: Hometown is Fort Wayne, Ind. ... Attended Snider High School in Fort Wayne, where his nine INTs as a senior tied the school's record set by NFL Hall of Famer Rod Woodson ... Earned first-team all-state honors (AP) as a junior and senior ... Also played basketball (point guard) and baseball (center field) for Snider.
