Jake Bates has only been a UFL kicker for two weeks and in that short time, he's already pulled off a feat that's only been accomplished one time in the 104-year history of the NFL.
After hitting an improbable 64-yard field goal for the Michigan Panthers during the team's opener last week, Bates followed that up by hitting ANOTHER field goal from beyond 60 yards in Week 2. With two seconds to go until halftime, the Panthers were sitting at Birmingham's 44-yard line and at that point, Michigan coach Mike Nolan had two options: Attempt a Hail Mary or send Bates out for a 62-yard field goal attempt.
After watching Bates hit from 64 in Week 1, it was probably an easy choice for Nolan, who ended up sending his kicker out on to the field. Bates made the gamble pay off by nailing the kick from 62 yards at Ford Field.
HE DOES IT AGAIN! 62-YARD FG FOR BATES 🤯@jakebates30 | #UFL2024 pic.twitter.com/tmAHXtBAy2
— United Football League (@TheUFL) April 7, 2024
Bates also hit a kick from 52 yards in the game.
Although Michigan ended up losing to the Stallions 20-13, Bates has suddenly turned into one of the breakout stars of the league even though he's only attempted three field goals on the season.
Bates has now hit from 60 yards or more in back-to-back weeks, which is notable, because that's a feat that's almost unheard in the NFL, which is where Bates will likely be headed if he keeps kicking like this. In the entire history of the NFL, only one kicker (Brett Maher) has hit from 60 yards or more in back-to-back weeks.
Maher hit a 62-yarder in Week 6 back in 2019 and he then followed that up with a 63-yarder in Week 7.
NFL teams took notice of Bates after last week's kick and now that he's hit from long range again, there's a good chance that every special teams coordinator in the league now knows his name. After hitting the 64-yarder, multiple NFL teams reached out to the Panthers about Bates, according to the Detroit News, and it won't be surprising if interest in Bates continues to grow after his latest kick.
The 24-year-old is now 3-for-3 on field goal attempts through Michigan's first two games of the season.
What Bates has accomplished over the past two weeks is almost impossible to believe when you consider that before the UFL season started, he had not attempted a field goal since HIGH SCHOOL. Bates was a kickoff specialist in college, which is why he never got a chance to try a field goal at that level.
After leaving school, Bates actually went to training camp with the Houston Texans in 2023, but he only saw action in one preseason game, before losing the job to Ka'imi Fairbairn. Based on the way he's kicking, he seems like a near certainty that he'll once again be back in an NFL training camp this year.
For a closer look at all the UFL action that went down this week, be sure to check out our Week 2 takeaways here.
