The Texans brought Bates in for a workout Saturday, Aaron Wilson of KPRC 2 Houston reports.
Bates is local-area product from Tomball (Tex.), that earned an invitation as part of the Texans' local prospect day. He played collegiately at Texas State then transferred to Arkansas. Bates was a kickoff specialist at both schools and led college football with an 85.3 touchback percentage in 2022 while with the Razorbacks. There has not been any speculation that Houston is unhappy with Ka'imi Fairbairn, the club's kicker since 2017, who connected on 94 percent of his field goals in 2022.