Player Bio
| HT/WT: 6-6, 256 lbs |
| Birthplace: Nyssa, OR |
| Age: 28 |
| School: Boise St. |
| Experience: 6 |
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1:32Brandon Aiyuk Hires Agent, Seeks Return to NFL
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1:12NFL Mock Draft: Five Wide Receivers Land In Round 1
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0:51Commanders Beat Eagles to Stay Relevant in NFC East
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59:00Week 8 Recap: Lamar Jackson INJURED + Parker Washington PANIC & Trade Advice | FFT
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1:27Eagles Face Grim Season Outlook
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1:47NFC East Division Outlook
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1:57Eagles Quarterback Woes Deepen
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1:20Breaking Down the NFC Playoff Picture Following Sunday
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1:01Pressure on Eagles During 5-Game Losing Streak
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1:54Evaluating Commanders QB Jayden Daniels
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13:3312 QUESTIONS for Week 8! START or SIT Jared Goff, Ladd McConkey, Omar Cooper Jr, Tony Pollard & More | FFT
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59:06Week 8 Mailbag Q&A! Start/Sit, Waivers & Questions Answered! | FFT
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78:32Week 8 Start Sit Advice (Part 2) | Sneaky Starts & Players to BENCH | FFT
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0:47Keep Tearing It Down: Colts Master Plan
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1:48Week 8 Fantasy Football: QB Starts & Sits
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1:33Assessing Commanders NFL Trade Deadline Candidates
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68:01Russell Wilson and Kyle Long react to NFL Week 7: Seahawks dominant D, Giants QB conundrum & MORE | Set, Hut!
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8:49The Giants have a QB dilemma | Set, Hut!
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7:07Are the Vikings a real Super Bowl threat? | Set, Hut!
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0:51No Move Will Make Dallas Contenders: Love It or Hate It
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2026 Receiving
| STATS |
REC
Receptions
|
YDS
Receiving Yards
|
AVG
Average Yards per Reception
|
TD
Receiving Touchdowns
|
LNG
Longest Reception
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Regular Season | 5 | 27 | 5.4 | 0 | 9 |
Top John Bates News
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Commanders' John Bates: Ready to go for SNF
Bates (shoulder) is active for Sunday night's matchup with the Eagles.
Bates was dealing with a shoulder injury throughout the week, but he'll ultimately be able to give it a go for Sunday Night Football. He'll operate as a depth option behind Chig Okonkwo and Ben Sinnott at tight end versus Philadelphia.
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Commanders' John Bates: Questionable for SNF
Bates (shoulder) is listed as questionable for Sunday's game against the Eagles.
Bates missed each of the first two practices of Week 8 prep while tending to a shoulder injury, but he was on the field with a non-contact jersey Friday as a limited participant, per Ben Standig of The Team 980 Washington D.C.. Colson Yankoff and Ben Sinnott would both be in line for more offensive snaps if Bates is not cleared to play in Sunday's NFC East tilt.
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Commanders' John Bates: Misses another practice due to shoulder
Bates was a non-participant in Thursday's practice due to a shoulder injury.
Bates has been a spectator for the Commanders' first two Week 8 practices and will need to get back on the field in some capacity to put himself in position to play Sunday against the Eagles. The sixth-year tight end has played at least 30 percent of the offensive snaps in each of the Commanders' first six games, mainly serving as a blocking specialist while recording five receptions for 27 yards on six targets.
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Commanders' John Bates: No targets in loss
Bates played 22 offensive snaps and 14 special-teams snaps in Sunday's 37-20 loss to the Cowboys.
Bates played 22 of the Commanders' 71 offensive snaps in his start. The tight end was primarily used as a blocker for the team's run game but did not steal any targets from Ben Sinnott in the effort.
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Commanders' John Bates: Slated for TE1 duties Week 2
Bates should take on an elevated role against the Cowboys on Sunday after Chig Okonkwo was ruled out due to a hamstring injury.
Bates has primarily been utilized as a run blocker during his NFL career, though he did come up with two catches (on three targets) for 13 yards during the Commanders' 24-22 loss to the Eagles in Week 1. Bates should see an uptick in offensive snaps and targets from Jayden Daniels due to Okonkwo's absence, with Ben Sinnott and Colson Yankoff also in the mix for elevated roles.
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Commanders' John Bates: Two catches in loss
Bates caught two of three targets for 13 yards in Sunday's 24-22 loss to the Eagles.
Bates started along with Chig Okonkwo at tight end, and he garnered more than two targets in a regular-season game for the first time since Week 9 of the 2025 campaign. Bates was on the field for 34 of the team's 70 offensive snaps while also logging 15 more snaps on special teams.
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Commanders' John Bates: Avoids injury report Wednesday
Bates (hamstring) is not listed on the injury report for Wednesday's practice.
Despite dealing with a hamstring issue throughout the preseason, Bates is not listed on Wednesday's injury report ahead of the Week 1 meeting with the Eagles. The 28-year-old has spent his entire career with the Commanders, most recently catching 11 passes for 103 yards and one touchdown in 15 regular-season games during the 2025 campaign.
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Commanders' John Bates: Set to practice Tuesday
Bates (hamstring) is set to begin practicing Tuesday, Zach Selby of the Commanders' official site reports.
Bates suffered a hamstring injury in late July and has not practiced since the issue developed. The tight end is recovering well and is set to see at least a limited practice session Tuesday. While Bates has been absent, Ben Sinnott has been expanding his route tree in the hopes of obtaining the No. 2 tight end role. Bates will need to prove he can maintain his position behind Chig Okonkwo as he works his way back the remainder of the preseason.
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Commanders' John Bates: Sidelined by hamstring injury
Bates will miss "a couple of weeks" due to a hamstring injury, Ben Standig of Big 100 Washington D.C. reports.
Bates hurt his hamstring during practice Thursday and is going to miss a significant portion of training camp as a result. The third-year tight end is slated to work behind Chig Okonkwo this season, but Bates' injury could open the door for Ben Sinnott to make a push for the No. 2 role at the position.
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Commanders' John Bates: Held without a catch vs. Cowboys
Bates was not targeted during Thursday's 30-23 loss to Dallas.
Bates played 43 percent of offensive snaps but didn't draw a single target from fill-in quarterback Josh Johnson, while Ben Sinnott (61 percent of snaps) secured three of four looks for 29 yards. Expect Bates to again contribute as the No. 2 tight end behind Sinnott during Washington's regular-season finale against the Eagles in Week 18.
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Commanders' John Bates: Logs one catch in Week 15 win
Bates caught his lone target for 19 yards during the Commanders' 29-21 win over the Giants on Sunday.
Bates hauled in a 19-yard pass from Marcus Mariota early in the second quarter, but the fifth-year tight end wasn't targeted again for the rest of the game. Bates was named the starter for Sunday's NFC East clash one week after Zach Ertz sustained a season-ending torn ACL, though the former will likely operate in a timeshare with Ben Sinnott for the rest of 2025. Next up for Bates and the Commanders is a Week 16 home tilt against the Eagles on Saturday.
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Commanders' John Bates: Set for larger role sans Ertz
Bates did not record a target during the Commanders' 31-0 loss to the Vikings on Sunday.
Bates failed to see a target from a Commanders QB for the fifth time this season (and second time in Washington's last three games). However, with Zach Ertz out for the rest of season due to a torn ACL, Bates and Ben Sinnott are both poised for expanded roles on offense over the final four games of the regular season, starting with this Sunday's NFC East clash against the Giants.
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Commanders' John Bates: Two catches vs. Denver
Bates caught both of his targets for nine yards in Sunday night's 27-26 overtime loss to the Broncos.
Even with Zach Ertz's monster performance (10-106-0), Bates was still involved in the Commanders' passing attack during Sunday night's loss. The Boise State product has appeared in 10 games this season, catching eight of 12 targets for 71 yards. He's likely to remain a minimal component of Washington's offensive game plan in the Week 14 matchup against the Vikings.
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