JOHN BATES NEWS

Stuck behind Thomas Bates caught two of three targets for 15 yards in Sunday's 36-27 loss to the Lions, playing 32 percent of snaps on offense.

Impact Bates saw more snaps Week 1 (55 percent) but was targeted just once. He's unlikely to see many passes as the No. 2 tight end behind Logan Thomas, who played 62 and 73 percent of snaps the first two weeks (with 11 targets) after suffering an ACL tear in the middle of last season. With Thomas seemingly healthy, Bates figures to handle a minor role again Week 3 against the Eagles.

SEPTEMBER 19, 2022 • ROTOWIRE

Commanders TEs John Bates, Cole Turner Injury Update: Could Either Play Week 1 vs. Jaguars? Both tight ends have spent most of training camp sidelined.

SEPTEMBER 5, 2022 • NEWSOBSERVER.COM

Commanders TEs John Bates, Cole Turner Injury Update: Could Either Play Week 1 vs. Jaguars? Both tight ends have spent most of training camp sidelined.

SEPTEMBER 5, 2022 • STAR-TELEGRAM.COM

When Will Commanders Injured TEs Return? John Bates and Cole Turner still remain sidelined for the Commanders.

AUGUST 25, 2022 • STAR-TELEGRAM.COM

Won't play Saturday Bates (calf) will not play in Saturday's preseason game against Kansas City, Sam Fortier of The Washington Post reports.

Impact Bates is one of three tight ends ruled out for Washington, leaving Armani Rogers and Eli Wolf as the team's healthy options this Saturday.

AUGUST 20, 2022 • ROTOWIRE

Bothered by calf Bates (calf) is on a side field at Monday's practice, Nicki Jhabvala of The Washington Post reports.

Impact The second-year tight end missed some time earlier in camp but then returned to action last week. He was held out of the Commanders' preseason opener, however, allowing Armani Rogers and Curtis Hodges to get the first-team work at tight end. Bates is the probable Week 1 starter in the likely event Logan Thomas (ACL) isn't ready, though none of the Washington tight ends looks especially appealing for fantasy purposes. Bates was a fourth-round pick last year, and while he did get involved in the short passing game, he wasn't much of a receiving threat in college and lacks the speed to be more than a short-area threat in the pros.

AUGUST 15, 2022 • ROTOWIRE

Commanders TE John Bates: Recovering From Calf Injury? Bates was drafted in the fourth round of the 2021 NFL Draft.

AUGUST 9, 2022 • NEWSOBSERVER.COM

Finishes year with key role Bates finished his 2021 rookie campaign with 20 catches for 249 yards and a touchdown on 25 targets, starting eight of 17 games.

Impact The fourth-round pick never missed a game, but it wasn't until Week 10 that he saw more than 17 snaps or one target in a contest. From that point on, he played over half of Washington's snaps in each game, averaging 2.0 catches for 26.4 yards on 2.6 targets over the final nine games of the season. Bates may fall back to a reserve role in his second year, however, as Logan Thomas' season-ending ACL injury was a big factor in the rookie taking so many snaps. That could leave Bates as Washington's No. 1 TE for the offseason program, if nothing else, depending on the team's transactions this spring. Plus, the timing and severity of Thomas' injury mean he's no lock to be ready for Week 1 of 2022.

JANUARY 13, 2022 • ROTOWIRE

Steps into increased role Bates recorded three receptions on four targets for 35 yards in Sunday's 20-16 loss to Philadelphia.

Impact Bates took over the primary tight-end duties in Washington after Ricky Seals-Jones exited the game early with a neck injury. He took advantage by matching his season highs with three receptions and four targets. It's possible that Seals-Jones is held out of Washington's Week 18 matchup against the Giants, meaning Bates could be in position to rack up multiple receptions again to close the campaign.

JANUARY 3, 2022 • ROTOWIRE

Turner: John Bates has 'exceeded our expectations' Bates was mostly known as a blocking tight end at Boise State, but the rookie has become so much more than that.

DECEMBER 30, 2021 • WASHINGTONFOOTBALL.COM

Scores TD Bates caught two of three targets for 45 yards and a touchdown in Sunday's 56-14 loss at Dallas.

Impact Bates technically recovered his own fumble in the end zone, cutting the deficit to 42 points late in the fourth quarter. He played 75 percent of offensive snaps in the contest, while pass-catching specialist Ricky Seals-Jones took only 45 percent and finished with a loss of four yards on his lone reception.

DECEMBER 27, 2021 • ROTOWIRE

TE John Bates "It's Our Job To Show Up Every Single Day And Do Our Job To Our Best Ability" ' Post Game Press Conference John Bates speaks to the media following the game against Dallas on December 26th.

DECEMBER 27, 2021 • WASHINGTONFOOTBALL.COM

Woeful Washington not ready for prime time in lopsided loss

The Washington Football Team is just barely still in playoff contention

DECEMBER 27, 2021 • ASSOCIATED PRESS

John Bates recovers his own fumble for physical TD catch and run Washington Football Team John Bates recovers his own fumble for a physical touchdown catch and run.

DECEMBER 27, 2021 • WASHINGTONFOOTBALL.COM

John Bates trucks multiple tacklers for dominant 32-yard catch and run Washington Football Team tight end John Bates trucks multiple tacklers for a dominant 32-yard catch and run.

DECEMBER 27, 2021 • NFL.COM

Washington's play-action fake perfectly sets up John Bates for 29 yards Washington's play-action fake perfectly sets up Washington Football Team tight end John Bates for 29 yards.

DECEMBER 22, 2021 • WASHINGTONFOOTBALL.COM

Washington-Eagles moved to Tuesday Bates and Washington will no longer play the Eagles on Sunday, after the NFL officially rescheduled the matchup between the two teams for Tuesday at 7 p.m. ET.

Impact Due to ongoing COVID-19-related issues within Washington's organization, the NFL is hopeful that by delaying the game two days, the Football Team will restore enough players from the reserve/COVID-19 list to alleviate depth concerns on the roster.

DECEMBER 17, 2021 • ROTOWIRE

Washington In 60: John Bates on facing Eagles' defense In this Washington In 60, tight end John Bates discusses Washington's matchup with the Philadelphia defense.

DECEMBER 17, 2021 • WASHINGTONFOOTBALL.COM

One catch in loss Bates caught one of his two targets for 19 yards during Sunday's 27-20 loss to the Cowboys.

Impact With Logan Thomas (knee) on injured reserve, Bates operated as the No. 2 tight end behind Ricky Seals-Jones. Seals-Jones saw two more targets than Bates, but the latter out-gained the former 19-8. Over his last four games, Bates has caught 11 of 13 targets for 124 yards, but barring his first touchdown of the season, the rookie fourth-round pick doesn't garner much fantasy potential heading into Week 15.

DECEMBER 14, 2021 • ROTOWIRE

Moves up depth chart Bates caught three of four targets for 42 yards in Sunday's 17-15 win over the Raiders, while teammate Logan Thomas (knee) suffered a likely season-ending injury, Adam Schefter of...

Impact It's been a rough year health-wise for Washington tight ends, with Thomas previously missing six games due to a hamstring injury, while backup Ricky-Seals Jones has now missed three in a row with a hip issue. Seals-Jones filled an every-down role the first time Thomas was out, until his hip injury put Bates on the spot in a similar role Week 11 at Carolina. The rookie caught each of his three targets for 23 yards in that game, playing 99 percent of snaps before handing the job back to Thomas the next week. It's now possible Bates takes on a full-time role again if Seals-Jones isn't ready for Week 14 against Dallas, though the rookie is less of a pass-catching threat than his position mates in the Washington TE room.

DECEMBER 6, 2021 • ROTOWIRE

Catches three passes Bates caught each of his three targets for 23 yards in Sunday's 27-21 win over the Panthers.

Impact Bates operated as the Washington's No. 1 tight end Sunday with Ricky Seals-Jones (hip) sidelined and Logan Thomas (hamstring) still on injured reserve. The rookie played on all but one of the team's offensive snaps and his three catches were the second-highest total for any Washington pass catcher. With Thomas nearing his return, Bates will likely revert to playing a depth role at the position. If both Thomas and Seals-Jones are ruled out, however, Bates would be in line to serve as Washington's top tight end in a Week 12 matchup against the Seahawks.

NOVEMBER 24, 2021 • ROTOWIRE

John Bates set to take on larger role against Panthers Bates, who made three receptions for 35 yards against the Buccaneers, is set to make his first start against the Carolina Panthers.

NOVEMBER 19, 2021 • WASHINGTONFOOTBALL.COM

Likely to act as top tight end Bates is expected to serve as Washington's starting tight end Sunday against the Panthers with Ricky Seal-Jones (hip) ruled out for the contest and Logan Thomas (hamstring) still o...

Impact After Seal-Jones exited early in last week's upset win over the Buccaneers, Bates stepped in to play a career-high 63 percent of the Football Team's offensive snaps. Though he didn't fill a high-volume role in the passing game, the rookie made good on his limited opportunities, reeling in all three of his targets for 25 yards. Bates profiles as a low-end starter at tight end for deep-league lineups in Week 11.

NOVEMBER 19, 2021 • ROTOWIRE

Fills in for Seals-Jones Bates caught each of his three targets for 25 yards in Sunday's 29-19 win over Tampa Bay, playing a career-high 47 snaps with teammate Ricky Seals-Jones suffering a hip injury.

Impact A rookie fourth-round pick, Bates has now climbed from third to first on the depth chart with Seals-Jones joining starter Logan Thomas (IR/hamstring) on the injured list. However, it isn't clear if Seals-Jones' hip injury is serious, nor is it for certain that Thomas will miss additional time beyond Week 10. Bates was timed at 4.84 in the 40-yard dash and never reached even 300 yards in a season at Boise State, suggesting his receiving contributions won't match Seals-Jones' recent performance even if the rookie temporarily handles a three-down role for Week 11 at Carolina.

NOVEMBER 15, 2021 • ROTOWIRE

Records first NFL catch Bates caught his only target for a seven-yard gain in Sunday's 31-13 loss to Kansas City, registering his first regular-season NFL reception.

Impact The rookie fourth-round pick has seen just one target in two games since starting tight end Logan Thomas (hamstring) was placed on injured reserve. Ricky Seals-Jones has replaced Thomas in a three-down role, while Bates remains limited to blocking for the most part. He doesn't figure to see more than a target or two Week 7 at Green Bay.

OCTOBER 18, 2021 • ROTOWIRE