CINCINNATI -- The free-agency period has been good, very good, to the Cincinnati Bengals' defense.
Of the nine announced Bengals signings or re-signings, six were on that side of the ball. Another defender, safety Taylor Mays, is also expected to sign.
No one at Paul Brown Stadium is happier about the defensive haul than defensive coordinator Paul Guenther. After Wednesday's signing of outside linebacker Karlos Dansby, it seems clear that Guenther's hands have been all over the Bengals' free-agency efforts.
After all, had it not been for a promising meeting with the then-linebackers coach in 2013, Dansby might have ended up elsewhere.
"In '13 I came and visited. I met Paul," Dansby recalled. "We had a great relationship. We watched film together. We did everything right there on that visit. We grew on each other. It was an instant connection right then and there. We just couldn't make it happen with the terms [at the time]. But like I said, good things come to those who wait."
Dansby, who had been released by the Dolphins at the start of the 2013 free-agency period, ultimately returned that year with Arizona, the team that drafted him in the second round in 2004. After playing out that one-year deal, he spent two seasons in Cleveland before being cut by the Browns on March 19.
You'll recall that the same day the Browns released Dansby, he went on record saying he thought the Bengals had to be "licking their chops" seeing him on the open market.
"With what I bring to the table myself, I think [this signing] can be very, very dynamic, and it'll cause some problems for a lot of teams that weren't expecting this kind of move, or who weren't expecting to have to deal with this kind of talent that we have on this defense," Dansby said. "And with the way that Coach Paul will be able to dial certain things up that he probably couldn't do in the past, but he'll be able to have some freedom to do that, it just expands the defense and makes everybody great."
Great is exactly what the Bengals hope their defense will be in 2016. It's hard to imagine how it won't be. The unit already ranked second in scoring defense last season and was fifth in limiting red zone touchdowns. And, with a couple of exceptions, it's returning nearly the whole group of players who walked into free agency. Defensive tackle Wallace Gilberry, cornerback Leon Hall and safety Reggie Nelson still are unsigned. Gilberry's and Hall's production can be replaced, but getting an eight-interception season out of young backup safety Shawn Williams might be a tall order as Cincinnati appears to be moving on from Nelson.
Nelson was a Pro Bowl selection, and tied for the league lead in interceptions last season.
Combine Dansby's signing with the re-signings of Adam Jones, George Iloka and Vincent Rey in particular, and you have a formidable defense. That's why -- in addition to the Mike Brown family ownership team, head coach Marvin Lewis, and director of player personnel Duke Tobin -- due credit ought to go to Guenther. In some cases, he was the intermediary between the team and the free agents. He had just as active a role as anyone in convincing them they belonged in Cincinnati.
