1. Jessie Bates III was born on February 26,1997 and is an American professional football safety for the Atlanta Falcons of the National Football League.
32 Facts About Jessie Bates
1. 2.
Jessie Bates played college football for the Wake Forest Demon Deacons and was selected by the Cincinnati Bengals in the second round of the 2018 NFL draft.
3.
Jessie Bates originally committed to play college football for the Toledo Rockets, but he flipped his commitment to the Wake Forest Demon Deacons in February 2015.
4.
Jessie Bates did not play as a true freshman at Wake Forest in 2015 and chose to redshirt.
5.
Jessie Bates returned 18 punts for 73 yards along with tallying five interceptions, 100 tackles, four pass deflections and one forced fumble.
6.
In 2017, as a redshirt sophomore, Jessie Bates played in 11 of Wake Forest's 13 games, missing two due to injury.
7.
On January 4,2018, Jessie Bates announced his decision to forgo his remaining eligibility and enter the 2018 NFL Draft.
8.
Jessie Bates attended the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis and completed the majority of combine drills, but opted to skip the bench press.
9.
Jessie Bates performed well and finished third among safeties in the 60-yard shuttle, fourth among safeties in three-cone drill, and fifth among safeties in the short shuttle.
10.
Jessie Bates earned the ninth best time among his position group in the 40-yard dash and had the tenth best vertical jump.
11.
On March 13,2018, Jessie Bates participated at Wake Forest's pro day and performed the bench press and short shuttle.
12.
Jessie Bates attended pre-draft visits with multiple teams, including the Tennessee Titans, Pittsburgh Steelers, Detroit Lions, and Carolina Panthers.
13.
Jessie Bates was ranked as the third best free safety prospect in the draft by DraftScout.
14.
Jessie Bates entered training camp slated as a backup safety, but after quickly impressing the Bengals' coaching staff he became a possible candidate to take the role at starting free safety from George Iloka.
15.
Jessie Bates started all 16 games as a rookie in 2018 and recorded a team-leading 111 combined tackles, seven pass deflections, three interceptions, and one touchdown.
16.
Pro Football Focus had Jessie Bates receive an overall grade of 79.9 in 2018, which ranked 15th among all 163 safeties.
17.
Jessie Bates completed the 2019 NFL season with a total of 100 combined tackles, nine pass deflections, three interceptions, a forced fumble, and one fumble recovery while starting all 17 games.
18.
Jessie Bates ended 2020 with an overall grade of 61.2 from Pro Football Focus, which ranked 106th out of 168 safeties.
19.
Jessie Bates returned as the starting free safety to begin the 2020 NFL season, along with starting strong safety Vonn Bell.
20.
Jessie Bates made a total of 109 combined tackles, 13 pass deflections, three interceptions, and one forced fumble while starting all 17 games for his third consecutive complete season.
21.
Jessie Bates was the highest graded safety in the league out of 172 safeties with an overall grade of 90.1 from Pro Football Focus and a coverage grade of 90.0.
22.
Jessie Bates was a healthy scratch for a Week 18 loss at the Cleveland Browns as head coach Zac Taylor elected to rest the majority of starters.
23.
Jessie Bates finished with 88 combined tackles, four pass deflections, one fumble recovery, and one interception in 15 games and 15 starts.
24.
Jessie Bates finished with a total of 71 combined tackles, eight pass deflections, four interceptions, and a forced fumble while starting in all 16 games.
25.
Jessie Bates entered training camp as the de facto starting free safety under defensive coordinator Ryan Nielsen, userping Jaylinn Hawkins.
26.
Head coach Arthur Smith named Jessie Bates the starting free safety to begin the regular season, along with strong safety Richie Grant.
27.
Jessie Bates's performance earned him National Football Conference Defensive Player of the Week.
28.
Jessie Bates's performance earned him NFC Defensive Player of the week, his second of the season.
29.
Jessie Bates started all 17 games in 2023 and had career-highs with 132 combined tackles, six interceptions, and three forced fumbles while making 11 pass deflections and one touchdown.
30.
Jessie Bates earned a career-high overall grade of 99.6 from Pro Football Focus.
31.
Jessie Bates was voted to the 2024 Pro Bowl for the first of his career and made second-team All-pro for the second time.
32.
Jessie Bates started all 17 games in the 2024 NFL season and had a total of 102 combined tackles, ten pass deflections, and four interceptions.