Bengals: Jessie Bates, Tee Higgins highlight Day 2 of training camp

Day 2 of training camp is in the books for the Cincinnati Bengals! This gets us one day closer to the Week 1 matchup between the Bengals and Vikings but first, we should probably discuss what took place on Thursday at training camp.

Second-year receiver Tee Higgins and star safety Jessie Bates spoke to the media ahead of practice and gave us plenty to talk about.

Higgins noted that he has big goals for 2021, which include making the Pro Bowl, going over the 1,000-yard mark, and getting to the playoffs. One of those goals might be a little tougher than the other two but none of them are impossible by any means.

After all, Higgins surpassed 900 yards as a rookie despite not having his starting quarterback for the final six games of the season. Imagine what he can do with Joe Burrow back and healthy.

Bates mostly talked about his hopefully upcoming extension with the Bengals. He said he’s “eager” for the extension to get done and while he’d like to sign it before the season begins, he’s not going to be overly concerned if a deal isn’t reached before then.

There was some talk about this on Wednesday after Sam Hubbard said he wanted to play with Bates long-term, making us all giddy that he’s pushing for an extension for his guy as well.

These two got most of the buzz on Day 2 but that wasn’t all the second day of training camp had to offer. Let’s take a look at some other notable nuggets.

Day 2 of Cincinnati Bengals training camp is in the books!

Higgins and Bates led the way as far as the discussions go for Day 2 but both made big statements.

Higgins wants to be a 1,000+ yard receiver and he’ll have some stiff competition on his team, making it tougher to do so. However, the chances of Higgins, Ja’Marr Chase, and Tyler Boyd all amassing 1,000+ yards isn’t unfathomable by any means. If any trio of receivers could do it, it’s these guys.

Bates spoke on his extension and Bengals fans want that to happen sooner rather than later. With Hubbard taken care of, Bates deserves to get paid too. Both guys are key members of this defense so it’s time for the Bengals to show Bates they want him to be a part of this journey.

We’ll see what Day 3 has in store for us but it feels good to know that football is so close to being back in action!