ESPN NFL

Posted by ESPN.com's James Walker

The Cincinnati Bengals made a pretty big splash into what's left of the free-agent market when they agreed to terms with former Dallas Cowboys safety Roy Williams.

	Paul Spinelli/Getty Images
	Safety Roy Williams has agreed to a contract with the Bengals.

A former five-time Pro Bowler, Williams had some of his best years in Dallas under defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer, who is now running the defense in Cincinnati. Coming off a broken arm in 2008, what does Williams have left to offer the Bengals?

We check in with Matt Williamson of Scouts Inc. to get the answers.

James Walker: Matt, what is your initial reaction to the signing of Williams and how he fits with the Bengals?

Matt Williamson: I like their young safeties and their young secondary in general. The first thing that pops in my head, though, is I think Williams would be a great nickel linebacker for them. I know Dallas experimented a little bit with him that way, having him sort of close to the line of scrimmage on passing downs as their mid-range guy. They love [linebacker] Rey Maualuga, who fell to them in the second round. But there are questions about how well he can play the pass. Dhani Jones is getting up there in age. So if their nickel's second line of defense is Keith Rivers and Roy Williams, that might be a real nice situation for them.

Walker: In terms of Williams' natural position, can he still play safety and cover the deep halves at this stage of his career?

Williamson: No. You don't want him as the last layer. I think that is why he got cut and, really, why nobody wanted him. He's a dying breed. If you're an in-the-box strong safety and you can't do much else, there's not much of a market for you anymore. There are too many safeties who can do so many other things. A one-trick pony like Williams isn't real attractive. That's why he was still out there, and why he probably didn't sign for a ton of money.

Walker: How much will reuniting with Zimmer in Cincinnati help?

Williamson: The Bengals are really well-coached on defense. They don't get a lot of credit for it, but Zimmer does a nice job there. I can see him using Williams in a variety of ways. That's the obvious connection, because Zimmer knows what he's getting in the player. Williams has always been a liability if you're going to have him as a deep-halves player. Coverage in general just isn't his [specialty]. But he can still smack you and change the game and get turnovers. In this division, as you know, it's a pretty rugged group with a lot of offenses that want to run the ball. It might be a decent fit for them when teams are trying to put the Bengals away and trying to run out the clock.