'I Love His Leadership': Falcons Coach Praises Jessie Bates III

Although the Atlanta Falcons haven't begun training camp free agent addition, safety Jessie Bates III has impressed coach Jerry Gray.

Atlanta Falcons offseason addition Jessie Bates III has already impressed assistant head coach Jerry Gray, and training camp hasn’t even begun.

“We need a guy like him,” Gray told the team’s website. “I love his leadership. I love the way he plays on the football field and then you talk to him and you see the same thing. He’s always talking about game planning, doing this, getting guys together, being together.

“That’s critical when you’re in the NFL. A lot of guys they don’t understand the amount extra time that you need to be really good, and you could see it. They were really good on defense in Cincinnati, and we want guys like that on our team.”

Bates’ work ethic has helped him progress from being a day two pick for the Cincinnati Bengals in the 2018 NFL Draft to an All-Pro in 2020 and finally into signing his 4-year contract with the Falcons worth up to a little more than $64 million.

Setting an example for Atlanta’s defense could help the unit ascend this upcoming season, especially after the secondary allowed the eighth-most total passing yards and the tenth-most passing touchdowns in 2022.

Playing alongside a fellow All-Pro caliber defender in A.J. Terrell at cornerback, they could exceed their value as players by helping unlock the potential of other young players, namely, cornerback Jeff Okudah.

In 2020, the Detroit Lions selected Okudah No. 3 overall and expected him to be a lockdown corner from day one. However, this offseason, they traded him to the Falcons after he struggled to even stay healthy through the first few seasons of his career.

If Bates can help Okudah righten his career by studying the playbook with him as a fellow offseason addition, Atlanta’s defense and team as a whole could be on track for success, unlike anything the organization has seen since their Super Bowl appearance in 2017.

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