Warrington’s Ryan Bates leaves Buffalo Bills plenty to ponder

Sitting on the sidelines, watching Patrick Mahomes roar downfield for the winning touchdown in Sunday night’s epic overtime AFC Divisional game, is not how Ryan Bates wanted to end the season.
But Warrington’s Bates, an Archbishop Wood and Penn State offensive line standout, gave his Buffalo Bills lots to think about in 2021.
Bates made his first NFL start the day after Christmas in Buffalo’s 33-21 road win over the New England Patriots, thanks to multiple teammates landing on the COVID list. He started at right guard and had to shift to left guard midway through the game when teammate Ike Boettger ruptured his Achilles tendon.
No matter. Bates played nearly flawlessly on every snap, allowing just one pressure on Bills’ star quarterback Josh Allen.

Bates started Buffalo’s final five games, earning praise for his play and versatility. Four of the games were Buffalo wins as the Bills’ offense averaged over 34 points per game during that span. Bates played every snap in Buffalo’s 47-17 playoff pasting of New England on Jan. 15, in which Buffalo didn’t need to punt the entire game.
The Philadelphia Eagles signed Bates as an undrafted free agent. He was traded to Buffalo in August 2019. He made his NFL debut that Oct. 15 in a 14-7 Bills’ win over the Tennessee Titans. Bates distinguished himself as a special teams player until he was given the starting role on the offensive line.
The Herald profiled Bates in its Dec. 8, 2016 issue.

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