Late in the 2012 season, Ravens second-year linebacker Josh Bynes was preparing for the first start of his NFL career.
Bynes made 240 tackles for Auburn from 2007-2010, but he went undrafted and cut his teeth in Baltimore in a reserve linebacker and special teams role. However, when injuries hit the Ravens hard late in the 2012 season, Bynes was called on to start the final three regular-season games for Baltimore.
Bynes made his first career start against Denver on Dec. 16, 2012 at the age of 23. He still appreciates the guidance he got prior to that game in the form of a film session at the home of legendary safety Ed Reed.
“We sat down in the basement, me and him just sitting there watching film and going over the Broncos and stuff like that,” Bynes said on Glenn Clark Radio Dec. 12. “How he watches the game and breaks it down and stuff like that, then seeing how it shows up on Sunday is even crazier. I appreciate him for giving me that knowledge. I took a lot of those things me and him talked about my whole entire career — how to study film and pay attention to offense on a whole different level than I could ever imagine.”
The Ravens lost, 34-17, the low point of a season that eventually ended in the franchise’s second Super Bowl championship. But Bynes had 13 tackles, the jumping-off point for a career that spanned 12 seasons. The 34-year-old recently retired with the Ravens, for whom he played six years across three stints.
Bynes’ first stint with the Ravens featured nine starts from 2011-2013. His locker at the team’s Owings Mills facility was located right by three future Ring of Honor members: Haloti Ngata, Terrell Suggs and Marshal Yanda. The chances he had to soak in wisdom from those players were formative experience for Bynes, much like the film session with Reed.
“At the time, I already knew they were great, but obviously all three were phenomenal people. They all played a part in me trying to figure out where I stand in this league,” Bynes said. “They gave me a lot of tips and we talked all the time about everything. That was like, ‘Gosh, I’m in the league and I’m next to guys who I looked up to.’ [I] would never imagine having any conversations with them about ball and just our families, our kids hanging out together. It’s a crazy moment. That was like, ‘Dang, I’m in the NFL.'”
Bynes didn’t make the Ravens out of training camp in 2014 and was soon signed by Detroit. He played 38 games for the Lions from 2014-2016, then appeared in 25 contests for Arizona from 2017-2018.
Bynes made his return to Baltimore in 2019 following the Ravens’ 40-25 loss to Cleveland in Week 4. Baltimore sought a veteran linebacker to shore up an increasingly leaky defense after giving up 530 yards of offense to the Browns. He played in all 12 games the rest of the way, starting seven, and helped the Ravens rip off a dozen wins to end the season.
Bynes spent the 2020 season with Cincinnati, then signed with Carolina ahead of the 2021 campaign. However, he was cut by the Panthers ahead of the season and signed with the Ravens’ practice squad. Bynes ended up playing 14 games for Baltimore in 2021. He returned for a final time in 2022, playing seven games before the team acquired Roquan Smith.
The 6-foot-1, 240-pound linebacker totaled 582 tackles (39 for loss), 8.5 sacks, 5 interceptions, 3 forced fumbles and 3 fumble recoveries during his career. Bynes appreciates the trust the Ravens showed in him by bringing him back as often as they did.
“That’s more meaningful than anything else because they don’t trust many people, OK? They bring you in, they’re like, ‘Hey, we trust you, we know what you’re going to be able to do. And if you can’t get it done, we’ll get somebody else to get it done for us,'” Bynes said. “That’s just how the Ravens are because the expectation for them is, ‘We’re going to be Super Bowl contenders every single year.'”
Bynes now lives in Atlanta with his three sons and keeps busy coaching their various teams. He’d love to get involved in coaching or the media as the next step in his football career.
“Coaching obviously seems like the next move and something I’ve been loving and passionate about,” Bynes said. “I feel like I’ve had a long career of knowledge and [to] be able to pass that down to other guys and help them have long careers as well and just teaching the game of football from a player level … I’m definitely looking forward to that opportunity as well.”
For more from Bynes, listen to the full interview here:
Photo Credit: Kenya Allen/PressBox