Nick Shook of NFL.com put together a starting lineup of the best players under the age of 25 and Cincinnati Bengals safety Jessie Bates not only made the list but was the only Bengal to do so.
Here’s what Shook had to say about his reason for including Bates on the list:
"Bates is consistently among the leaders in Next Gen Stats’ coverage metrics, and he’s established himself as the heart of Cincinnati’s secondary in just three seasons. Bengals fans would have right to be upset if he’s not mentioned among the league’s best at the position. No worries here, though, because he’s not being bumped off the list for anyone — not even Antoine Winfield Jr., who is just beginning his own promising career. Bates is the only player in the NFL with 300-plus tackles and 30 or more passes defensed since 2018. If that isn’t the mark of a complete safety, I don’t know what is."
Shook is definitely right that Bengals fans would be upset if Bates hadn’t been included on the list because he’s arguably the best safety in the AFC and arguably in the entire NFL. Cincinnati was lucky to find him in the second round of the 2018 NFL Draft and now needs to work hard to try and extend him before the season begins in September.
Bengals safety Jessie Bates is one of the best safeties in the league.
I mentioned that Bates was the only one to land on Shook’s list and that’s not surprising. As excited as fans are about this offense, we haven’t seen it all come together since Joe Burrow is coming off an injury and Ja’Marr Chase is a rookie who has yet to take an NFL snap.
Burrow did make a previous list of the best players under the age of 25 but this was an entire starting lineup. He’s not making the cut over rival quarterback Lamar Jackson.
It’s nice to see Bates continuing to get recognized for the hard work he puts in on the field. Hopefully, the Bengals can come to an agreement on an extension for him and make sure he stays in Cincinnati past 2021. Bates and Vonn Bell have worked well together and it’d be a shame to regress after this year should Bates end up leaving.
Do you think anyone else should have made Shook’s list?