Josh Bynes wasn’t the biggest addition for the Cincinnati Bengals in free agency by a long shot. The honor goes to D.J. Reader and Vonn Bell, with room for others in the conversation.
But Bynes, a well-established leader, producer and participant on some great defenses, keeps coming up in conversations.
The latest to bring him up while talking about the defensive overhaul? Bengals director of player personnel Duke Tobin, according to Michael LaPlaca of Bengals.com:
“Coming from a great defense, we like his leadership, his instincts and ability to bring the young guys along, which is good. When we had the opportunity in free agency come up, we jumped on it. There’s a good piece for us going forward. I’m excited to see him in Bengals stripes.”
This is hardly the first time Bynes’ name has generated some hype this offseason. Back in May, the former Baltimore Ravens linebacker made it clear he was already taking control of the linebacker room.
Bynes has since gone into detail explaining how he’s making it his mission to serve as a mentor for the young linebackers on the depth chart. And as we wrote, he’s got a chance to land as one of free agency’s biggest steals.
Now the most senior member of the linebacker unit, Bynes doesn’t figure to play the most snaps — but it’s clear even those inside the organization think he’ll be a critical piece of whether the unit can take an important upswing.
