Bates is communitcating with Dax Hill

[*SHRacerX*]

(07-28-2022, 11:19 PM)fredtoast Wrote: His behavior makes perfect sense to me.  He knows that he will end up playing.  So he wants to help these guys out because they will be his teammates this year.

As a 5th year veteran Bates does not need training camp.  Can you blame him for getting out of it?  If a player under contract doesn't come to training camp he can get drilled with a ton of fines.  Bates is not under contract so there is no penalty for skipping training camp.

Basically he is saying, "Yeah, I will play for the franchise tag money, but I am not going through training camp."  If he is not getting as much money as he wants then he sees the "free pass" to skip camp as an added benefit.

The one thing no one thinks about is that Bates could get injured working out on  his own and get absolutely nothing.  He doesn't want to risk a contract with only $17 million guaranteed, but he could end up with no contract at all.  Sure, it is unlikely, but if he is running and cutting it isn't a "free pass".  

FWIW, this is the last thing on earth I want to have happen to Bates.  I hope he plays, wins a Super Bowl, and decided he wants to be a Bengal for life.  Unlikely, again, but that is my wish for him.