Jessie Bates III’s exit from Atlanta came with emotion, gratitude and a reminder that football relationships can run deeper than the box score.
The veteran free safety, sent to the Jacksonville Jaguars in a trade Monday, said leaving the Falcons facility hit harder than a routine roster move. Bates spent 3.5 seasons in Flowery Branch, and even with the team’s limited on-field success during that stretch, the organization clearly left a mark on him.
“You spend somewhere four years; you create relationships, you create bonds that’ll last a lifetime,” Bates told Juston Lewis of the Jacksonville-Times Union.
“There are people over there from the staff, the players, the janitors, the cafeteria people - those are my people. I would see those people every single day, and they did a lot for me. So there’s so much appreciation and love for those guys and girls over there.”
Bates said the goodbye was emotional for everyone involved.
“It was tough,” Bates said when asked about the moment he departed the Falcons facility. “When I left that building, there were teary eyes from myself and coaches, trainers, equipment guys - a lot of love there. I take pride in not just being a great football player, but just being a great person, being a great light in the building.”
Atlanta made Bates its first trade-deadline selloff move, dealing the nine-year NFL veteran to Jacksonville for a 2027 NFL Draft second-round pick and a 2028 fifth-rounder. The move closed the book on a run that included three different coaches, no playoff appearances and plenty of “what-ifs.”
Bates had become one of the team’s most recognizable figures, earning All-Pro recognition, serving as a team captain and lining up alongside potential franchise quarterback Michael Penix Jr. His reputation in Atlanta was built on more than interceptions and his patented rendition of the “Peanut Punch”; he was a steady presence in the locker room, too.
The trade also reflected where Atlanta appears to be headed. Bates was approaching unrestricted free agency after the season, and the Falcons did not seem likely to re-sign him. At 29, he fit less with the youth movement the team is trying to build through the draft.
Atlanta’s deadline activity didn’t stop there. The Falcons later moved starting center Ryan Neuzil to the Baltimore Ravens on Tuesday for guard Andrew Vorhees on an expiring deal and a conditional 2028 sixth-round pick.
Then on Friday, the Falcons added younger pieces on multiyear contracts, signing defensive end Cameron Thomas to a three-year, $33 million deal and cornerback CJ Henderson to a two-year, $20 million deal.
Bates’ Jaguars debut will have to wait. Head coach Liam Coen said he will not play against the 1-7 Titans, and the scheduling setup gives him the week off the Falcons couldn’t provide. Jacksonville has already had its bye, while Atlanta has not.
The Falcons, now 3-6, will take the field for the first time since the trade when they host the Kansas City Chiefs, who are 6-2, in a Week 10 matchup. DeMarcco Hellams is expected to step into the free safety spot. Atlanta then heads into its bye week after the Chiefs game.
Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. on CBS.
In Other News...
Falcons Left Divine Deablo Behind In One Telling Deadline Decision
The Falcons were active sellers before the trade deadline, moving several players on expiring contracts and adding draft picks in return for Jessie Bates III and Ryan Neuzil. It was the kind of move that signaled Atlanta was willing to keep reshaping the roster rather than simply letting the season play out, especially with younger options already starting to push their way into the picture.
Divine Deablo, though, stayed put, and that decision said plenty of its own. League interest never really materialized, with his injury history and recent dip in play working against him, while Kendal Daniels and Harold Perkins Jr. have made the linebacker spot feel a little less essential. For the Falcons, it leaves Deablo in a tricky spot, still on the roster but no longer looking like a piece the team is counting on long term. [Read more 🡒]
Falcons Need To Stop Delaying The Michael Penix Jr. Decision
Michael Penix Jr. has already become the center of the Falcons long-term quarterback conversation, and the latest chatter only adds another layer to a decision Atlanta cannot keep putting off. After his recent stretch as the starter, the focus is less on whether the Falcons need a plan and more on whether they are finally ready to commit to one, especially with the franchise still weighing what the position should look like beyond the present.
ESPN analyst Ben Solak floated the idea of Atlanta looking at Seattle quarterback Drew Lock in 2027 as a bridge option, but that kind of thinking only underscores the bigger issue. The Falcons do not need another temporary fix if Penix is the answer, and if he is not, then the organization has to be honest about turning to its 2027 first-round pick instead of stretching the uncertainty out even further. [Read more 🡒]
Drake London Gives Falcons Fans Another Reason To Be Frustrated
Drake London has given Falcons fans plenty to track this month, and not for the reasons Atlanta would prefer. The wide receiver was fined $23,882 by the NFL for unnecessary roughness involving helmet use during the Week 9 game against the Bengals, adding another hit to a November that has already been expensive for him.
London was also fined $12,537 for a separate unnecessary roughness penalty against the Buccaneers, pushing his total for the month past $36,000. For a Falcons team that has dropped two straight, the discipline issues around one of its top pass catchers only add to the frustration around a stretch that already feels too familiar. [Read more 🡒]