Falcons' Jessie Bates III Hauls 2 Interceptions in Win vs. Panthers: 'It Felt Amazing!'
The Atlanta Falcons are waking up on Monday celebrating a 24-10 victory after welcoming former Alabama quarterback and Carolina Panthers No. 1 pick Bryce Young to the NFL.
There were a handful of players that really stepped up and made the win possible for the Falcons, and one of them was safety Jessie Bates III.
“I feel like I had a good feel for what they wanted to do today," Bates said. "That they had to get him comfortable, they want to get the ball out quick, kick the ball inside the hashes, so I kind of took advantage of that.”
The Falcons signed Bates this offseason after he spent five years with the Cincinnati Bengals, and on Sunday he proved exactly why he was worthy of such. They made him the fourth highest-paid safety in the league with a four-year, $64 million contract, and he may have earned all of that money on Sunday already.
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Bates was responsible for two crucial interceptions, both of which led to points being put on the board. He didn't stop there either, as the do-it-all defensive back also forced a crucial fumble from Miles Sanders that again led to the Falcons putting points on the board.
"It felt amazing man, it’s a lot of hard work that a lot of people don’t see—not just for me, for my teammates, from where we started in OTAs,” Bates said.
It may be difficult for the safety to replicate what he did on Sunday, but even if he did a quarter of what he was able to do in Week 1, the Falcons will be in a great position to win.
“It’s possible and the work we put in it pays off," Bates said. "For us to go out Week 1 to get that first win out the way is huge but we’re going to celebrate tonight and next week we got to go right back to work. It won’t be easy to go .500 again so just a one-week mentality.”
Bates and the Falcons host the Green Bay Packers on Sunday at 1 p.m.
