A two-time Super Bowl champion with more than a decade of NFL service, Kyle Van Noy entered free agency in March with a resume that projected to draw interest, even at his age.
Posting a career-high 12.5 sacks in 16 games for the Baltimore Ravens in 2024, Van Noy earned his first Pro Bowl selection at age 33. His production dipped in 2025, as he managed just two sacks in 15 games, his lowest total since 2016.
Van Noy owns 57 career sacks across 12 NFL seasons with Detroit, New England, Miami, the Los Angeles Chargers and Baltimore. Selected No. 40 overall by the Lions out of BYU in 2014, the veteran posted 23.5 of those sacks over his three seasons as a Raven.
Nearly four months after the market opened on March 11, though, Van Noy is still available. No signing has been reported since his contract with the Ravens expired, and as of Saturday, the veteran linebacker remains without a team.
Appearing on FanDuel TV’s Up & Adams Show with host Kay Adams on May 5, Van Noy named the Cincinnati Bengals as a team where he could fit and offered high praise for Joe Burrow.
“When you play against him, and you’re on the football field, you understand that he’s a top-three quarterback in this league,” Van Noy said of Burrow. “If you know, you know. But he’s that dude.”
Last night’s Met Gala star Joe Burrow is a top 3 QB in the league, according to Kyle Van Noy…
Could we see the 2x SB Champ sign with the Bengals? 🤔@KVN_03 | @JoeyB | @Bengals | @heykayadamspic.twitter.com/iq74CnFpKz
— Up & Adams (@UpAndAdamsShow) May 5, 2026
“I’m not a part of anybody’s master plan of the future,” Van Noy added. “I’m the plan of a fixer. I’m going in there to fix the problems.”
Van Noy clearly plans to play in 2026, and could wait until closer to training camp to sign, which is not unusual for veterans.
Meanwhile, the Bengals have overhauled the front of their defense. Cincinnati declined to place the franchise tag on Trey Hendrickson in March, and the pass rusher inked a deal with Baltimore worth $112 million over four years, $60 million of it fully guaranteed.
The team responded by signing former Seattle edge rusher Boye Mafe, fresh off a Super Bowl LX title, to a three-year, $60 million deal on March 12. In April, the club traded the No. 10 overall pick to the New York Giants to acquire Dexter Lawrence, a three-time Pro Bowler at defensive tackle, attaching a one-year, $28 million extension.
Cincinnati then drafted Cashius Howell at No. 41 overall after an 11.5-sack season at Texas A&M earned him SEC Defensive Player of the Year honors. Those additions join 2023 first-round pick Myles Murphy and 2025 first-round pick Shemar Stewart, who missed most of his rookie season with an ankle injury.
While Van Noy showed in 2024 that he can still produce, it is difficult to see where the 35-year-old fits on a defense that addressed its pass rush months ago.
Having missed the playoffs in three consecutive seasons, the Bengals moved aggressively this offseason, and the roster looks rounded out as a result. Veterans report to training camp on July 28, around the time Van Noy could have a new team.
