The Cincinnati Bengals, on paper, have two established starters at the safety position in their defensive backfield with Jessie Bates III and Vonn Bell. That dd not stop them from drafting a couple of safeties this past weekend, including one with their first-round draft pick in Daxton Hill.
Bates is currently slated to play under the franchise tag this year. The team has been pretty open about the fact that they tried to sign him to a contract extension in 2021, but they couldn’t come to terms on a deal. It’s not clear that they will successfully sign an extension this year, either.