The Bears have acquired some depth for their offensive line in the form of Bates.
The Bears have acquired offensive lineman Ryan Bates in a trade with the Bills, Buffalo announced over Twitter on Monday. Chicago will be sending a 2024 fifth-round pick in the trade.
Chicago tried to sign Bates in 2022, the first offseason Ryan Poles spent as the team’s general manager. However, the Bills matched their offer sheet, which was a four-year, $17 million deal. Two years after trying to initially acquire Bates, the Bears were able to do so through a trade.
Bates has 19 career starts to his name, having served as Buffalo’s starting right guard in each game he played in 2022. He also has center experience, having played 190 snaps at the position over the last 3 seasons. In that lone season as a starter, he finished with a 61.8 PFF grade. As a backup center in 2023, he finished with a 78.7 PFF grade.
The 27-year-old Bates figures to be a candidate to compete for the starting center position, which is vacant due to the release of Cody Whitehair. His center-guard versatility should, at the very least, help him serve as valuable depth for Chicago’s offensive line.
After trading away their fifth-round pick this year, these are the selections the Bears currently have in the 2024 NFL Draft:
- Round 1 (via Panthers): No. 1
- Round 1: No. 9
- Round 3: No. 75
- Round 4: No. 111
- Round 4 (via Eagles): No. 123
You must be logged in to post a comment Login