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Josh Bynes

Panthers Sign LB Josh Bynes

August 11th, 2021 at 11:17am CST by Zachary Links

The Panthers have signed linebacker Josh Bynes, per a club announcement. To make room on the roster, the Panthers released safety Lano Hill. 

Bynes was one of a handful of veterans the Ravens added to their defense in the middle of the 2019 season. In 2019, he recorded 46 tackles, a sack, and two interceptions, and Pro Football Focus gave him high marks for his coverage and run-stopping abilities.

After helping to stabilize Baltimore’s front seven, the Bengals picked him up last year and made him a first-stringer for all 16 games. Bynes finished out 2020 with some of the best numbers of his career — 99 tackles, a sack, and two passes defensed.

Bynes, 32 later this month, isn’t an elite stopper, but he could provide valuable veteran experience for the Panthers. He’s got 117 career appearances under his belt and a championship ring on his finger after securing the final tackle of Super Bowl XLVII.

Bengals To Add LB Josh Bynes

March 24th, 2020 at 7:30pm CST by Rory Parks

The Bengals acted quickly to replace starting linebacker Nick Vigil, who agreed to terms with the Chargers earlier today. Per Jeff Zrebiec of The Athletic, Cincinnati is signing free agent Josh Bynes to a one-year deal (Twitter link).

Bynes was one of a handful of veterans the Ravens added to their defense in the middle of the 2019 season, and his presence helped stabilize the unit. Though he is by no means an elite player, he is a solid ‘backer whose experience and on-field savvy will be a boost to the Bengals’ front seven.

He has started 47 games in his nine-year career, which includes an earlier stint with the Ravens from 2011-13, a three-year run with the Lions, and a two-year stay with the Cardinals. In 2019, he recorded 46 tackles, a sack, and two interceptions, and Pro Football Focus gave him high marks for his coverage and run-stopping abilities.

The Ravens had expressed interest in retaining the Auburn product, and it’s not as though Baltimore is loaded with ILBs at the moment, but Bynes saw a better opportunity with the division-rival Bengals. As it stands now, he would start alongside second-year pro Germaine Pratt.

During his first stint in Baltimore, Bynes made the final tackle of Super Bowl XLVII, which earned him a championship ring.

Ravens Sign LB Josh Bynes

October 2nd, 2019 at 9:54pm CST by Dallas Robinson

The Ravens have signed free agent linebacker Josh Bynes, Baltimore announced today.

Fresh off an embarrassing defensive performance against the Browns in Week 4, Baltimore is revamping its linebacker corps. Earlier this week, the Ravens agreed to terms with veteran L.J. Fort, and now they’ve added Bynes, who spent the first three years of his career in Baltimore after entering the league as an undrafted free agent.

Bynes, 30, joined the Lions after leaving Baltimore and subsequently spent 2017-18 with the Cardinals. Last season, Bynes started 11 games in the desert while posting 75 tackles and two interceptions. Among qualifiers, Bynes graded as the NFL’s 14th-best linebacker, per Pro Football Focus.

Thus far, Patrick Onwuasor and Kenny Young have seen the majority of the Ravens’ snaps at inside linebacker, but it’s possible one or both will see their playing time reduced given Baltimore’s recent additions. both Onwuasor and Young rank among the bottom-quarter of PFF’s linebacker grades.

NFL Workout Updates: 10/1/19

October 1st, 2019 at 1:42pm CST by Zachary Links

Here’s a look at the latest workouts from around the NFL:

Arizona Cardinals

Atlanta Falcons

Baltimore Ravens

Buffalo Bills

Cleveland Browns

Read more

Bills Host Josh Bynes, Stephone Anthony

July 22nd, 2019 at 1:34pm CST by Zachary Links

Linebackers Josh Bynes and Stephone Anthony are visiting the Bills today, a source tells ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter (on Twitter). Both players profile as high-upside, yet low-risk, depth options. 

The Cardinals released Bynes in March to save just $667K against $1.87MM in dead money. That was a sharp turn from the previous year, when Bynes was being played ahead of both Deone Bucannon and Haason Reddick.

Anthony seemed to have a great deal of promise when he entered the league as a first-round pick of the Saints in 2015. But, after starting in all 16 games as a rookie, he was moved from middle linebacker to strongside linebacker with poor results. The Dolphins acquired him for a fifth-round pick in 2017, but the change of scenery didn’t do much for him. Anthony had just seven tackles across 16 appearances last year and the Dolphins declined his fifth-year option, making him a free agent.

Cardinals Release Josh Bynes

March 5th, 2019 at 3:08pm CST by Zachary Links

The Cardinals released veteran linebacker Josh Bynes, as Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweets. By releasing Bynes, Arizona will save only $667K against the cap versus a dead money charge of $1.871MM. 

Bynes, 30 in August, has been with the Cardinals for the last two seasons. He was elevated to the starting lineup in 2018 and posted 75 tackles and two sacks across eleven games. The Cardinals’ old regime had him playing ahead of both Deone Bucannon and Haason Reddick, but the new regime wasn’t interested in keeping him on a deal that extended through the 2020 season.

This figures to be only one of many moves made by the Cardinals in March. After finishing with the worst record in the NFL last year, Arizona will look to overhaul the roster with roughly $38MM in cap space and a strong stash of draft picks.

Cardinals Cut Andre Smith, Bene Benwikere

November 26th, 2018 at 1:51pm CST by Sam Robinson

The Cardinals made a host of moves Monday afternoon. Another of Patrick Peterson‘s top sidekicks is now out of the picture, with Arizona making the decision to waive cornerback Bene Benwikere.

Additionally, the Cards are cutting veteran tackle Andre Smith. They also placed Phil Dawson and linebacker Josh Bynes on IR and are elevating kicker Zane Gonzalez from the practice squad. The team announced the moves.

Smith’s inconsistency will end his Arizona tenure, per Steve Wilks (via ESPN.com’s Josh Weinfuss, on Twitter). He started eight games at right tackle for the Cardinals, including Sunday’s 45-10 loss to the Chargers, but has not played to the level he displayed during his earlier Bengals days. The 31-year-old edge blocker will head to the waiver wire, joining the less experienced Benwikere.

The Cards already parted ways with Jamar Taylor, acquired in hopes he could fill the Peterson-sidekick role the team has long had issues with, after Benwikere beat him out for that job. The young journeyman started eight Arizona games this season, intercepting one pass and making 51 tackles. Benwikere’s eight starts represent a career high in his five-season NFL run.

Dawson’s been dealing with a hip injury this season. It forced the 43-year-old kicker to miss a game earlier this month. The Cardinals’ kicker over the past two seasons, the 20-year veteran is a free agent after this season. He’s attempted a career-low eight field goals, making five. This will end Dawson’s least accurate season.

Previously going with rookie Matthew McCrane to fill in for Dawson, the Cardinals will now turn to Gonzalez. The Browns waived Gonzalez after a rough Week 2. The 2017 seventh-round pick has not kicked in a game since.

Despite being retained on a low-level deal, Bynes was playing ahead of both Deone Bucannon and Haason Reddick this season. He made 75 tackles, registered two sacks and returned a fumble for a touchdown in a standout season. Bynes is signed through the 2020 season.

West Rumors: Foster, Mack, Vea, Bynes

April 12th, 2018 at 9:47pm CST by Sam Robinson

Reuben Foster is not eligible for the commissioner’s exempt list at this point, Jim Trotter of ESPN.com tweets, so the embattled linebacker would be able to be in attendance on the first day of the 49ers‘ offseason program come Monday. Matt Maiocco of NBC Sports Bay Area expects Foster to be there (Twitter link), despite circumstances that could well have Foster bound for an ignominious departure after a standout rookie season. Foster will become eligible for the commissioner’s exempt list once the league concludes its investigation into his alleged act of domestic violence — an incident that prompted authorities to charge the 2017 first-round pick with three felonies. Foster could face up to 11 years in prison. Conversely, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (video link) would be surprised if Foster is with his teammates at 49ers headquarters next week, noting he will probably “stay away for a little bit.” Rapoport said he expects the 49ers to quickly waive Foster if, in fact, they learn the 24-year-old defender committed these crimes.

Here’s the latest from some other West-division cities.

  • Khalil Mack has not shown up for the first week of Jon Gruden‘s return to the Raiders, but Reggie McKenzie remains confident a contract agreement will come. “This is going to be a big contract and all sides are trying to make everything work,” McKenzie told NFL.com’s Steve Wyche (via NBC Sports Bay Area’s Scott Bair). “It’s about the end result. One thing I know is that we love Khalil Mack and we want to make him a Raider for life. We’ll get through all the other stuff. We understand the business part of it. Everybody is aware of everything and nobody is surprised. Everything, on all sides has been positive.” Wyche reports Mack and Gruden have spoken recently, despite the superstar defensive end’s absence, and McKenzie understands Mack may stay away from the team until a deal is completed.
  • Vita Vea is eligible to attend both the Seahawks‘ and 49ers’ local pro days, which do not count against teams’ top-30 visits, but he will instead meet with the Redskins next Wednesday, Matt Barrows of the Sacramento Bee tweets. The mammoth ex-Washington Huskies defensive tackle went to high school in the Bay Area. He’s visited several teams and is a surefire first-round pick.
  • Cardinals linebacker Josh Bynes received $1.25MM in guaranteed money via his latest deal with the team, Kent Somers of the Arizona Republic notes. Despite a new coaching staff coming in and the Cards set to turn to a 4-3 setup, Bynes signed to stay in Arizona on a three-year deal. The base value of that contract is $5.575MM, per OverTheCap, but it could max out at close to $10MM. Bynes started 19 games for the Lions between the 2015 and ’16 seasons and was a Cardinals starter in just one 2017 contest. But Steve Wilks sees the 28-year-old former UDFA as a viable candidate to start at middle linebacker.

LB Josh Bynes Re-Signs With Cardinals

March 14th, 2018 at 3:03pm CST by Ben Levine

It sounds like Josh Bynes is sticking around Arizona. ESPN’s Josh Weinfuss reports (via Twitter) that the linebacker is expected to re-sign with the Cardinals. It’s a three-year deal worth up to $10MM, tweets Ian Rapoport of NFL.com.

The 2011 undrafted free agent out of Auburn joined the Cardinals last offseason following stints with the Ravens and Lions. The 28-year-old proceeded to play in 14 games (one start) for Arizona, compiling 36 tackles, one sack, and two forced fumbles. After playing in 236 snaps, Bynes didn’t qualify for Pro Football Focus’ linebacker ratings, but he likely would have been ranked in the top-35 at his position.

Bynes is likely to play a top reserve role behind Chandler Jones, Scooby Wright, Deone Bucannon, and Markus Golden. We previously heard that the organization wanted to retain Bynes, but it was expected that the organization would pursue additional reinforcement via the draft.

[RELATED: Cardinals Depth Chart]

NFC Notes: Jerry Jones, Landry, Bruce Allen

March 4th, 2018 at 12:59pm CST by Rory Parks

Clarence E. Hill, Jr. of the Star-Telegram writes that Cowboys owner Jerry Jones will testify before commissioner Roger Goodell and other owners at an appeal hearing tomorrow in Palm Beach, Florida. Jones is appealing the commissioner’s decision to assess him more than $2MM in legal fees stemming from the federal court case with Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott and Jones’ opposition to Goodell’s contract extension.

As Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk observes, the fact that Jones is testifying before Goodell means that Goodell has not exercised his right to designate the appeal to someone else, even though not doing so creates obvious conflict of interest concerns. In Florio’s estimation, Jones has strong arguments against fee-shifting for his threat to sue the league with respect to Goodell’s extension, as he never actually followed through with the threat. His arguments against fee-shifting with respect to the Elliott matter is a different story, as the Cowboys clearly provided substantial assistance to Elliott in his battle with the league.

Florio says Goodell has final and binding power to resolve the amount of legal fees to be paid, but the resolution granting him that power does not expressly grant him the authority to also answer the threshold question of whether club behavior triggered a repayment obligation. Goodell presumably will take the position that he has final say in that regard, too.

As the Goodell v. Jones saga drags on, let’s take a look at several more notes from the NFC:

  • Although the Bears have interest in Dolphins wideout Jarvis Landry, Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune does not believe the team should trade for him. Biggs says Landry does not give Chicago the dynamic, speedy playmaker that it needs, and given that, it would cost too much in both dollars and draft capital to land him.
  • Although most mock drafts have the Lions selecting a RB or DE with their first-round draft pick, Michael Rothstein of ESPN.com says the team could target an OLB like Virginia Tech’s Tremaine Edmunds to boost its pass rush. Rothstein says the Lions could indeed target a RB with its first draft choice, but it’s a deep class for RBs, and the better value might be found on Day 2.
  • John Keim of ESPN.com says it is unclear whether Redskins team president Bruce Allen is on the hot seat, though Keim believes he should be. Nonetheless, Keim thinks it would take a really bad season, and not just a mediocre one, for Allen to be shown the door.
  • Mike Jurecki of 98.7FM says the Cardinals would like to retain linebacker Josh Bynes as a depth option, but he believes the team will target a linebacker at some point in the draft and/or look to the UDFA market to grab an LB (Twitter link).
  • Earlier today, we took a look at potential QB plans for the Vikings and Giants.
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