He was the 150th overall selection by the Seattle Seahawks in the 1992 NFL Draft, but only joined the team in 1993, after the Olympics were over. In his football career, the majority of which he played for the Carolina Panthers, he had 9110 total yards in kick returns and five kick-return touchdowns (the NFL record for kickoff return touchdowns in a career is six). In one of his best seasons, 1996, he returned 33 kicks for 998 yards - a remarkable average of 30.2 yards per return - and one kick return touchdown. Bates was selected to the NFL 1990s All-Decade Team.