08-01-2020, 10:33 AM
(08-01-2020, 09:00 AM)SunsetBengal Wrote: Welcome to the boards, and thanks for volunteering your opinions on Bynes. Since you've studied him in depth and I really don't know much about him, let's start with the general, before moving to the specific.Thanks for the welcome, enjoy reading your posts!
In your opinion, do you feel like he's got enough "tread left on the tires" to be a valuable contributor? How is he on the basics, things like biting on PA, not getting plowed by an unblocked Guard, etc? Does he play smart in coverage? Better defending the middle, or flowing to the edges?
The tread itself is a concern. He's labored in his movements and it hurts him. There are examples of him lined up directly in front of a RB, defending a screen pass. He'll read it well but can't limit the gain without support from his DBs. You can scheme away from putting him in these positions but overall his range has become very limited. He's never been fast but now speed and quickness are obvious negatives.
As far as the basics are concerned, he's very good. It's part of what stabilized our terrible LB play before we got him. He will bite from time to time but won't be over aggressive and/or badly fooled. His eyes are a definite plus. At most, it's a false step or so before he drops back into position. He won't get blown up by pulling lineman and is willing to crash a running lane. But most of the time it seems like a stalemate. He plays physical but is not extra physical himself (if that makes sense). He's not going to slip many blocks either, another spot where athleticism can hurt him. He tends to work hard getting around blocks instead of a shoulder dip and slip. Rarely will he flat out beat the lineman to the spot even with a decent read.
Bynes is very disciplined in all fazes. He's money on the back side of runs and will not allow an easy cutback lane. He can handle some zone coverage duties but that's not where you want him. The Ravens often put 6 DBs on the field and played LJ Fort or Onwuasor in those situations instead of Bynes. He's a two down backer for sure but if you want to blitz on early downs, he can hold up in coverage for a bit and is an okay blitzer, nothing special there.
With the young, athletic LBs you have, Bynes shouldn't be asked to cover or chase the sideline much. He will always be in position. Even if he can't make the tackle himself he'll allow time for help to arrive.
