Earlier today The Morning Shift reacted to Atlanta Falcons Safety Jessie Bates III missing his second straight practice yesterday, both padded practices, talked about how they’re not sure if Bates III is missing practice because of an injury or if he could be possibly be doing a hold-in for more money, reacted to an article from NFL writer for ESPN Seth Walder where he proposes the Falcons trading Bates and a 2028 sixth-round pick to the San Francisco 49ers in exchange for a 2027 third-round pick, and explained why they think the Falcons trading Jessie is unlikely but not out of the realm of possibilities
The Falcons All-Pro Safety is entering the last year of his contract, and there is no guaranteed money left on his deal, and after seeing his teammates Kyle Pitts, Drake London, Matthew Bergeron, and Bijan Robinson all get paid this summer he could be holding in for a new deal, or at least want some guaranteed money in the final year of his current contract.
There is also a chance he could just be nursing a minor injury, and the Falcons aren’t saying anything about it because they’re not obligated too right now.
Falcons Head Coach Kevin Stefanski has a pre-practice press conference tomorrow, and could be asked about Jessie’s absence then, but whether Bates has an injury or is holding out for a new deal if the Falcons and General Manager Ian Cunningham decide to trade away one of their best players it’ll say a lot about how the new regime feels about this season.
