Bear Digest

Landing Ryan Bates on Third Try Shows What Bears Think They Have

Analysis: GM Ryan Poles not only tried to sign Ryan Bates as a restricted free agent but also attempted unsuccessfully to trade for him before finally landing him on the third attempt.

Gene Chamberlain

Ryan Bates on Bears Center Battle.mp4
Ryan Bates on Bears Center Battle.mp4 /
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Aaron Kromer is one of the last names anyone might have expected to hear Friday when Bears centers spoke to the media for the first time since their starting battle began in camp.

That's Aaron Kromer, the same former Bears offensive coordinator who reportedly issued a tearful apology in front of the team in 2014 for telling an NFL Network reporter negative things about their QB, Jay Cutler. Sometimes the truth hurts.

As it turns out, Kromer had a hand in bringing along both of the center candidates the Bears currently have, Ryan Bates while Bills line coach in 2022 and 2023 and Coleman Shelton while Rams offensive line coach and running game coordinator from 2017-2020.

So the Bears can thank their former offensive coordinator from a decade ago for setting this center battle up, in a manner of speaking.

The person they can really thank is GM Ryan Poles, who coveted Bates enough to try to sign him as a restricted free agent before they eventually traded a fifth-round pick for him this offseason.

It was Bates' second trade. The Eagles dealt him first to Buffalo, but now he is wanted after he played only 35 snaps last year.

"It feels very nice," Bates said. "I remember the first time I got traded I was a rookie in Philly and I didn’t know what to think of it. I thought it was a bad thing. "Second time around I view it as a good thing."

According to Bates, it was actually the third try for a trade when the Bears finally acquired him.

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"I signed a contract here two years ago," he said, recalling the restrited free agent offer sheet. "It didn't quite happen the way (Poles) wanted it to—Bills matched the contract. I was there for the past two years. They (Poles) tried to trade for me within those two years, and they finally got me on the third try.

"I'm happy they did. I think I fit well into this offense. I love the team and I love everybody so far. I couldn't have been in a better spot."

Bates is listed as the starting Bears center heading into the preseason opener on the "unofficial" depth chart. The reason Bates thinks he fits in well is his mobility.

"I think I fit well in this offense—wide-zone team," he said. "I'm athletic. One of my biggest attributes is my feet. And like I said, today was the first day in pads and we got to hit, I feel like this offense, it does well for me. I think I do well for the offense.

"I can just try to put my best foot forward every day and just try to embrace."

Bates called his job competition similar.

"We are both lighter guys—we're not 320-330 pounds," he said. "We both can move really well. We played similar. We come from the same coach in the past—he had in L.A. I had in Buffalo."

There is a difference because Shelton is listed 285 pounds and not 302 like Bates. That can matter.

Whoever the center is, they need a leader at the position besides someone who can block. They have had some leaders but no one at the position anyone one call elite in their play since possibly the departure of Olin Kreutz.

Cody Whitehair had a few good years when allowed to focus on the position early in his career six years ago, but after that he was shuttling around between guard and center.

Moving around that way is not something on Bates' mind, even though he has played far more snaps at guard (1,053) than at center (203).

"Right now I'm solely focused on center but you never know," Bates said. "I've been thrown in at either guard during a walk-through. You never know what happens during a game. You can get thrown in there in a pinch.

"You know, I'm ready, I know the interior three (positions). I'm trying to create have a master understanding of this offense. Every day I'm getting better and better with knowing everything, but yes, I’ll be ready at all times to switch positions in a pinch."

As center, Bates and Shelton are both at the middle of current Bears issues. Repeated false starts and trouble with quarterback Caleb Williams' cadence continue to plague the offense in practice. They did again on Friday.

Bates sees it as an inevitable a step to overcome for Williams.

"Being vocal, doing a great job with his cadence, getting everybody on the same page, the play calls, because it's a lot different than what he was doing in college, and he's embracing it wholeheartedly and he's kicking ass. He really is."

When DeMarcus Walker got into a shoving match with the Bears offensive line during practice Friday, Williams interceded on behalf of his guys and won some respect for standing up to a big defensive lineman.

"That's my quarterback. I love that mentality," Bates said. "That's who he is. He's a chippy guy. He wants to get in there."

Cadence issues and false start penalties might indicate otherwise, but it's probably better to praise your QB than criticize him—whether you're an offensive lineman or an offensive coordinator.

Twitter: BearDigest@BearsOnMaven

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Gene Chamberlain
GENE CHAMBERLAIN

BearDigest.com publisher Gene Chamberlain has covered the Chicago Bears full time as a beat writer since 1994 and prior to this on a part-time basis for 10 years. He covered the Bears as a beat writer for Suburban Chicago Newspapers, the Daily Southtown, Copley News Service and has been a contributor for the Daily Herald, the Associated Press, Bear Report, CBS Sports.com and The Sporting News. He also has worked a prep sports writer for Tribune Newspapers and Sun-Times newspapers.